Mumbai Hoarding Collapse: Search and Rescue Operation Continues
Ongoing Rescue Operation at Mumbai Hoarding Collapse Site
Mumbai, India - The search and rescue operation at the site of a giant hoarding collapse in Mumbai continues more than 40 hours after the incident, officials reported on Wednesday. Two more bodies have been located under the debris but are yet to be pulled out.
The hoarding, which was illegally erected on a piece of land owned by the Government Railway Police (GRP), collapsed onto a petrol pump in the Chheda Nagar area on Monday evening amidst dust storms and unseasonal rains.
Rescue teams have so far extricated 89 persons from under the collapsed hoarding. Of these, 14 were declared dead while the other 75 were injured, according to officials.
National Disaster Response Force’s (NDRF) Assistant Commandant Nikhil Mudholkar stated, “We have spotted two bodies stuck under the third girder of the collapsed hoarding but we are facing difficulties in reaching the spot. One needs to crawl to reach there.”
The NDRF personnel have removed the first girder after cutting it overnight and are now removing the debris with the help of earthmovers and excavators. They will now cut the second girder, and there are more than five such girders at the crash site.
Once the girders are removed, it will be known how many people are still trapped under the debris, the official added.
A small fire broke out at the incident site during the search and rescue operation on Wednesday morning, but it was immediately doused by the fire tenders deployed there.
The search and rescue operation is ongoing, and further updates are awaited as the city reels from this tragic incident.
