NEW DELHI: Four persons died and dozen others—including three children—are feared trapped after a four-storey building collapsed in northeast Delhi’s Mustafabad area in the early hours of Saturday, officials said.
According to a fire department official, a call regarding the building collapse was received at 2.50 am following which nine fire tenders-cum-rescue vehicles were rushed to Gali No. 1, Shakti Vihar in Dayalpur.
Police received information about the building collapse around 3.02 am at Dayalpur police station, a senior police officer said.
“Upon reaching the location, it was found that a four-storey building belonging to Tehsin had collapsed, reportedly trapping 22 individuals,” he said.
So far, 14 people have been rescued and shifted to Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, where doctors declared four of them brought dead, the police officer said.
A joint rescue operation by teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the Delhi Police is currently underway.
“There is a possibility that up to 12 more people are still trapped under the debris,” said an NDRF officer.
Meanwhile, Mustafabad MLA Mohan Singh Bisht also arrived at the site of the incident to take stock of the situation. Speaking to reporters, he assured that appropriate legal action would be taken against any officials found negligent.
“I have informed the Delhi LG and the MCD commissioner that action should be taken against the officials for their negligence. Appropriate compensation will be provided to the families of the deceased…” he said.
Bisht also stated that the entire Mustafabad area is filled with illegally constructed buildings and could “cause harm” at any time.
“The power companies are not providing electricity connections to the poor, yet electric poles are found inside the houses. The MCD and other such departments are mired in corruption, and this incident has exposed them,” the MLA stated.
Notably, the national capital is divided into 12 zones, and according to civic agency estimates, the total number of buildings in the city is approximately 35 lakh.