5 Dead, 18 Injured After Warehouse Collapses in Kolkata
Massive chunks of iron beams and concrete crumbled during the construction, where several workers were engaged
Kolkata: At least five persons have died while 18 others including a woman were injured after an under-construction warehouse collapsed from top with a deafening sound at Taratala in south western parts of the city on Wednesday. A total of 20 injured under treatment at SSKM Hospital. CM shared these details after visiting them. Three persons have been detained by the police for questioning after filing a case in the incident
The death toll may rise as another 12-15 people have remained trapped under the debris amid a rescue operation by the Army, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), state fire and emergency services and disaster management group personnel of the Kolkata Police.
The deceased were Rohit Chowdhari (40), Krishna Chowdhury (30) and two more males who are yet to be identified. Some of the 18 injured are Durbasha Mallan (56), Mani Chand Kumar (22), Sahid Kumar (26), Rajesh Ruidas (25), Bishwa Prakash (28), Bodan Munda (28), Rajendra Rao (55) and Ram Prasad Choudhury (21).
All the deceased and injured were in a group of nearly 40 labourers, working at the site on B/2 Transport Depot Road, at around 12.07 pm when a concrete casting of a giant iron structure of the proposed godown suddenly fell down, leaving all of them trapped.
Within a few hours, four Army columns, NDRF personnel swiftly joined the state government’s agencies for the rescue operation. The Eastern Command said, “Deploying immediately after a distress call from the civil administration, a specialized team of Army rescue personnel, specialist Engineers and Medical personnel are assisting in rescue efforts.”
It added, “In coordination with #NDRF, #SDRF and #KolkataPolice the #IndianArmy personnel are sparing no efforts to find several people believed to be trapped under heavy concrete debris. Senior Army Officers are coordinating the rescue efforts. #EasternComd prays for the safety and well-being of the trapped citizens and assures that no efforts will be spared to save them.”
In the evening, the Kolkata Police informed about the rescue of 22 people and their admission to SSKM Hospital where four of them were declared brought dead. West Bengal chief minister Suvendu Adhikari, who visited the accident spot along with four cabinet colleagues in the afternoon, said later that rescue operations have been underway for another 12-15 people still trapped.
The accident site, spread across 6,689 square metres, belongs to Shambhunath Behera of M/s Behera Brothers which was granted by Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port Authority a 30-year lease from August 1 in 2024 to set up a multi-storyed warehouse and cold storage facility.
Mr Adhikari informed that the warehouse's building plan, sanctioned by the Kolkata Municipal Corporation on January 17 this year during the Trinamul Congress-rule, had faults.
“The incident did not happen due to a heavy rain that made the ground weak. It happens when a building plan is sanctioned in exchange for money. The pillars got tilted while the nuts of the structure got loose, leading to the collapse,” the CM told the media showing the warehouse's map. The incident has revived the horror of the collapse of under-construction Vivekananda Flyover at Girish Park in northern parts of the city which claimed more than 25 lives in 2016.
