Mother-daughter duo killed, 9 hurt in Virar building collapse; some residents feared trapped

Palghar, Aug 27 (PTI) A 24-year-old woman and her toddler daughter were killed and nine others injured early Wednesday after a portion of an “illegal” four-storey building collapsed onto a chawl in Virar in Maharashtra’s Palghar district, officials said.

Nearly 18 hours after the rear portion of Ramabai Apartment collapsed at 12.05 am, debris is still being removed, with a preliminary assessment suggesting that six to seven individuals are feared trapped, a senior civic official said.

Constructed in 2012, the building has 50 flats, and the collapsed part had 12 apartments.

A chawl is a large tenement house located in a compound. Details regarding the number of families and rooms affected in the crash are not known.

Rescuers have pulled 11 persons, some with serious injuries, from the debris so far, and two of them have been declared dead, said the official from the Vasai-Virar City Municipal Corporation (VVMC).

The deceased were identified as 24-year-old Aarohi Omkar Jovil and her daughter Utkarsha Jovil (aged one). Both were found unresponsive under the rubble and declared dead upon arrival at the hospital, said Vivekanand Kadam, District Disaster Management Officer of Palghar.

The injured have been rushed to various hospitals in the area and Nalasopara, on the outskirts of Mumbai, while firefighters and teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are conducting a rescue operation at the site.

A VVMC spokesperson had confirmed that the building, which has two wings, was “illegal". Police have arrested the builder of the building after Vasai Virar Municipal Corporation (VVMC) lodged an FIR, a senior official added.

Citing a preliminary assessment of the site by the Medical Health Department, VVMC Assistant Commissioner Gilson Gonsalves said six to seven individuals are still feared trapped beneath the rubble.

The removal of debris was delayed because officials initially struggled to move heavy machinery to the crashed building located in a congested locality.

"As of now, debris clearance is still underway. For the first several hours, the debris had to be cleared manually by civic teams and two units of the NDRF. Now, the operation is being carried out with machinery and progressing on a war footing," Gonsalves said.

The collapse has rendered several families homeless. The civic body has taken immediate steps to offer relief.

"All affected families have been temporarily housed at Chandansar Samajmandir. We are providing food, water, medical assistance, and other essential services," Gonsalves said.

A witness said the tragedy has marred the Ganesh festival celebrations planned by the building residents. PTI COR NR NSK