Rescue workers and policemen at the collapsed 11-storey building on Sunday
The death toll in Chennai building collapse has risen to 20 with two more bodies pulled out from under the debris on Monday evening. A 35-year-old woman was among two people rescued alive from debris yesterday morning; she was pulled out 39 hours after the collapse of multi-storey under-construction building. The 11-storey building collapsed during heavy rain on Saturday, killing at least 18 people. About 30 people are still feared trapped.
Here are the latest developments:
"So far, 20 persons have died, 15 identified and five yet to be identified. Out of the 15, six belong to Tamil Nadu, five to Andhra Pradesh and four are from Odisha," Tamil Nadu Director of Public Health Dr K Kulandaisamy said.
The woman rescued on Monday morning, Neenamaal from Andhra Pradesh, has been taken to hospital. So far, 18 people have been injured in the collapse. The construction workers in the building when it collapsed were mostly from Andhra Pradesh and northern states. Many were in the building to collect their wages.
A senior cop told NDTV, "Clearing the debris is a huge challenge. This would take almost two to three days and we hope to save many lives." Rescuers could hear feeble voices in the debris, said TS Sridhar, commissioner of the disaster management agency, the NDRF.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu visited the collapse site and the hospital on Monday where the injured were undergoing treatment. He announced a compensation of Rs five lakh to the familes of the victims.
On Sunday evening, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa said there were 72 construction workers in the building when it collapsed. Twenty three people have been rescued so far.
Police have arrested five people including the promoters and engineers of the building and has charged them with alleged irregularities and compromising on quality and safety.
Ms Jayalalithaa, who visited the site on Sunday, said, "It appears they have not adhered to approved plans. The building appears to have serious structural defects". She announced a compensation of Rs. 5 lakh each in addition to the earlier compensation of Rs. 2 lakh for the victims. The Andhra Pradesh government too announced Rs. 5 lakh for each victim.
A National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team has been leading rescue work using gas cutters, iron rods and shovels after cranes lifted concrete blocks to get to the survivors. TV and still footage showed crowds of rescuers in yellow helmets searching the ruins - huge slabs of concrete which had pancaked onto each other, twisted steel reinforcing rods and tangled scaffolding.
Earlier on Saturday, 11 people died when a four-storey structure, 50 years old, collapsed in New Delhi.
In April last year, 74 people were killed when an eight-storey building being constructed illegally in the Mumbai suburb of Thane in western Maharashtra had collapsed.
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