HYDERABAD: At least 11 people, including women and children, were killed and 18 others injured after an old structured building collapsed in the locality of Choori Para on Tuesday.
Most of the deceased belonged to one family; many were trapped under the debris which rescue workers continue to remove, with fears there may be more dead.
The incident took place between 1.30pm and 2pm when the two stories house collapsed.Its debris fell on an adjoining house.
The house was owned by Chaudhry Yamin Siddiqui – who was using the premises for making bangles – and most of deceased are family members of his brother, Akhtar Siddiqui.
Rangers, officials of National Highway Authority, Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, Sindh Building Control Authority rushed to the spot and launch rescue operation.
MPAs rushed to the spot to supervise relief and rescue work. Commissioner Hyderabad Jamal Mustafa Syed and SSP Pir Farid Jan Sarhandi visited the spot and hospital to see arrangements.
“I rushed to the spot to ensure rescue operations started immediately and that’s why we are able to shift maximum number of injured to the hospital to save their lives,” said Deputy Commissioner Hyderabad Mohammad Nawaz Sohoo.
Area residents said that on ground storey of Akhtar’s house, labourers would use a cauldron for bangle work.
“It [the cauldron] causes heat in the house as well,” said an area resident.
A large number of people gathered there that made the job of rescuers’ difficult to a great extent. Some adjoining builders were vacated under directives of the district administration to avoid any more damages from occurring.
It was in June 1996 when in a similar incident 25 people were killed when a multi-storey building – Arain Manzil - collapsed in Market Tower area due to deep digging on an adjacent plot by a builder.
On Sept 11,2013 three labourers were killed in Liaquat Colony area when an under construction ground plus three storey building had collapsed.
An inquiry committee is to be formed by administration for today’s incident.
