Coimbatore: Five dead, 12 injured as bus stand roof collapses in Somanur

Five persons died while 12 were injured on Thursday when the concrete roof of a bus stand in Coimbatore fell down on those standing beneath it, said a fire service officer. Four of those trapped under the debris were killed on the spot, while one woman died at the government hospital in Coimbatore. [caption id=“attachment_3973977” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. AFP[/caption] Chief Minister K Palaniswamy condoled the deaths and announced a solatium of Rs four lakh each to their families from the state disaster relief fund.  “I express my sympathies and condolences with the families of the victims,” he said in a statement. The accident occurred at the Somanur bus stand. Coimbatore is around 500 km from Chennai. “It was a concrete roof measuring around 100 feet in length along the main building,” the officer told IANS over phone. “In simple words, it was like a concrete sunshade projecting around 15 feet from the main building. The length of the shade will be around 100 feet.” He said there was no supporting column for the 15 feet shade. “Two women and two men lost their lives. And seven were injured as per the records in the government hospital. I am not sure how many injured have gone to private hospitals,” he added. According to him, it has been raining in Coimbatore for the past couple of days and the structure might have got weakened due to that. The chief minister said in a statement that he directed the district collector and hospital authorities, where the injured were admitted, to ensure best treatment for them. He sanctioned aid of Rs 50,000 and Rs 25,000 each to those with severe and simple injuries respectively from the Chief Minister’s Public Relief Fund. Palaniswami said he asked Local Administration Minister SP Velumani and District Collector TN Hariharan to expedite relief operations and also meet relatives of the deceased.     With inputs from agencies