Raigad building collapse: 4-year-old boy found alive under rubble next to dead mother; toll rises to 12

The toll in the Raigad building collapse rose to 12 on Tuesday after rescuers recovered the body of a woman from beneath the debris of the five-storey building, while a man died of cardiac arrest on Monday night after he was hit by a stone from the falling building, reports said. Those among the dead are the four-year-old child’s 30-year-old mother and two sisters, aged seven and two years, PTI quoted the police as saying. Two teenagers are also part of the casualties. So far eight people have been rescued, while around eight people are still missing after the Tariq Garden building in Raigad’s Mahad town, collapsed on Monday evening. Police on Tuesday registered an offence against five people, including the builder and architect of Tariq Garden for the collapse. The offence was registered against builder Farooq Kazi, RCC consultant Bahubali Dhamne, and architect Gaurav Shah under sections 304, 304A and 338 of the IPC. Thane guardian minister Eknath Shinde reached Mahad in the wee hours on Tuesday following instructions from Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, to oversee rescue and relief work, PTI reported. The building Tariq Gardens, which was around 10 years old, collapsed in Kajalpura in the Mahad tehsil at around 7 pm on Monday. There were around 45 flats in the building. Hindustan Times reported that some people left the building when it started shaking. The local administration, including the police and fire brigade, are engaged in carrying out search and rescue operation. “Search and rescue operation continues at the spot where a building collapsed in Kajalpura area of Raigad district last evening,” said Raigad District Collector Nidhi Chaudhari. Three teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are also present at the spot to carry out rescue operations. Meanwhile, NDRF Director General Satya Pradhan gave an update about the Raigad building collapse on Twitter, saying: “NDRF teams on the site; carrying out SAR operation; with all special equipment; canine squad being used; NDRF commandant monitoring real-time.” Around 25 people have been rescued and shifted to a hospital while 17 people are injured. Taking cognisance of the incident soon after the collapse, Thackeray had said he has spoken to Nidhi Chaudhary and Mahad MLA Bharat Gogawale, and “assured all possible support” for relief work.

CM Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray spoke to MLA @BharatGogawale and Collector Nidhi Chaudhary to inquire about the building collapse in Mahad. He has assured them that all possible support will be extended for speedy rescue & relief works.

— CMO Maharashtra (@CMOMaharashtra) August 24, 2020

Meanwhile, teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) were also deployed to aid in rescue operations. Home Minister Amit Shah also tweeted about the collapse, saying, “The collapse of a building in Raigad, Maharashtra is very tragic. Have spoken to DG NDRF to provide all possible assistance, teams are on the way and will be assisting with the rescue operations as soon as possible. Praying for everyone’s safety.” A viral video of the collapse showed a plume of dust rising from where the building had stood. Another video showed police trying to control several onlookers gathered at the collapse site. Soon after the collapse occurred, Maharashtra minister Aditi S Tatkare was quoted by ANI as saying that three floors of the five-storey building had been affected. Meanwhile, the NDRF said that the incident occurred at 6.50 pm. “Rescue teams have been moved with all necessary CSSR equipment, canine squad, etc” the NDRF statement added. With inputs from agencies