8 killed as Bhiwandi building collapses

Eight people, including an elderly couple and a three-year-old boy, were killed and two injured when a 35-year-old two-storey building in Bhiwandi collapsed early on Sunday. The elderly duo owned the building in Hanuman Tekadi area.

According to Bhiwandi Nizampur City Municipal Corporation (BNCMC), the building had been declared as “most dangerous”. This is the second such mishap in the city a week after many people lost their lives in a house collapse in the powerloom town.

The deceased have been identified as the owner Sajjanlal Mahadev Gupta (60), his wife Satyawati Gupta (55), Dhaniram Baburam Thakur (45), Rekha Thakur (35), Somvanti Thakur (60), Shivani Thakur (14), Devesh Thakur (9) and Naitik Thakur (3). The injured, Ramjan Ali Ahmed Ansari (38) and Shabir Ali Mohamamd Azim Ansari (38), are admitted at Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital.

BNCMC official Sunil Zalke said, "The building's occupants were served evacuation notices, following which only two families moved out. To get them vacate the place, the civic body had even cut off their water connections. But three families, including the owner, continued to reside in the building."

Thane district guardian minister Ekanth Shinde visited the site and inspected the rescue work. BNCMC commissioner E. Ravindran and tahsildar Vaishali Lambate also visited the spot.