Two men, believed to be father and son, died after a building collapsed in northeast Delhi on Sunday evening. The two, identified as Chanderpal, 60, and Vijay Kumar, 33, were trapped beneath the debris and were declared dead after rescue teams pulled them out and took them to the hospital.
The recovery followed a rescue operation that continued through the night after the building collapsed on Sunday evening.
The incident took place within the jurisdiction of the Harsh Vihar police station. According to a senior police officer, rescue personnel have recovered two bodies from the debris, while efforts are continuing to rescue another person believed to be trapped underneath.
Personnel from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Delhi Disaster Management
Authority (DDMA) and Delhi Fire Service are participating in the rescue operation.
Police said the property is reportedly owned by Manoj Kumar.
Construction Of Additional Floor Suspected In Building Collapse
Additional DCP Sandeep Lamba said the building was originally an old, single-storey structure, with construction underway to add another floor.
“We received a call that a building had collapsed. The original structure was an old, single-storey building; an additional floor was being constructed on top. The area is completely enclosed, making it difficult to even identify exactly which building collapsed,” he said, news agency ANI reported.
Before the deaths were confirmed, Delhi ministers Kapil Mishra and Ashish Sood had visited the site to assess the rescue operation.
Mishra said firefighters and NDRF personnel were carrying out rescue efforts and that no deaths had been reported at that point.
“The fire department and NDRF personnel are actively engaged…It is believed that two individuals may be trapped beneath the debris, though there have been no reports of fatalities thus far; efforts are underway to rescue them,” he told reporters.
Describing the collapse as unfortunate, Mishra said all relevant agencies had been deployed, and an investigation would be conducted to determine the circumstances behind the incident.
“All relevant agencies are fully mobilised. This is, without a doubt, an unfortunate incident, and the circumstances surrounding its occurrence will certainly be investigated,” he said.
He also shared a preliminary assessment of the possible cause, suggesting that work to install a new lintel may have led to the collapse.
“At first glance, it appears that an attempt was being made to install a new lintel; it collapsed, causing the floor below to cave in as well, trapping two people-reportedly a father and his son,” Mishra added.
(With inputs from agencies)
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