One dead after a dilapidated four-storey building collapsed in Kalbadevi

In an unfortunate incident of a building collapse in the Kalbadevi area of South Mumbai, the neglected Khanderaowadi Building Number 5 came crashing down on a passerby around 10.35 pm on October 3. The entire building collapsed and the person was stuck inside the debris. Later on, he was rescued and shifted to the hospital where doctors declared him dead.

According to the Mumbai Fire Brigade Department, the life of the building was 100 years old whereas, the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) had declared the structure as dilapidated. A notice was also issued to the tenants to vacate the dilapidated structure.

On October 3, the toilet on the ground floor developed cracks, the building tilted, following which around 20 tenants of the building were asked to vacate the unsafe structure. All the tenants vacated the building around 5.30 in the evening of the same day. Immediately after the building collapsed at 10.35 pm, the fire brigade team evacuated more than 100 residents from Raj Bhavan and nearby residential buildings to prevent further loss of lives and damage.

According to the police officials, they were informed immediately after cracks developed inside the structure whereas along with the fire brigade they immediately rushed to the spot and evacuated 20 people who were present inside the building. After evacuating the residents, the entire building was pulled down. A major tragedy was averted as the building was evacuated on time.

Note: There are over 14,000 dilapidated buildings in Mumbai, of which a majority are in south Mumbai.