Nagpur: One of the nine labourers who were trapped beneath the debris in the basement of an under construction building in Vivekananda Nagar near Deo Nagar after a protection wall collapsed on Sunday, died while 8 others were rushed to the hospital. Three of them were reportedly critical. Sources informed that the fellow labourers showed presence of mind and undertook rescue operations thereby minimising adversity. The rescued labourers were in trauma and rushed to the hospital. Of them, two grievously injured are reportedly battling for life. Four suffered multiple fractures and four others escaped with minor injuries. The incident exposed violation of labour laws in construction sector as the workers on job were not wearing safety gears although task allotted to them was dangerous.
According to an eye-witness, the wall collapsed at around 5.30 pm when the workers were engaged in constructing of a protection wall in the basement. “There were four walls on four side that were being constructed using concrete bricks. Of them, construction of three walls was completed. When about 30 labourers were busy in construction of a wall, one of thewalls constructed on South side of the plot came crashing down. A loud sound in aftermath of crashing of the wall triggered panic and neighbours came rushing out of their homes to inquire about the cause of noise. To their horror, they saw frenetic activity at the ongoing construction site.
Lot of sounds could be heard in the neighbourhood. Following the mishap, a group of labourers first fled the site fearing for their lives. But some of them gathered courage and rushed to the site to rescue those trapped under the collapsed wall.
According to one estimate, the wall being constructed in the basement was about ten to twelve feet tall and one can
imagine the plight to labourers who got trapped underneath it. Some labourers remained under the debris for about 13 minutes and the injured were rushed to Orange City Hospital and Research Institute (OCHRI).
The injured labourers are identified as Mantu Shilu (24),Vinod Shelu (18), Surjan (18), Rajan Darshimha (18), Mansulal Bhopa (18), all residents of Rampur, Chhindwara (MP); Ravindranath Dhurve (47), a resident of Uday Nagar, Nagpur; Sunil Uke (20), Dinesh Namdeorao Pentar (40), both residents of Nagpur. Soon after the incident, staff of Dhantoli Police Station and a team of Fire Rescue and Emergency Services of Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) arrived at the spot.
Large numbers of onlookers also gathered at the spot after the incident. Police Sub-Inspector Balram Zadokar said that the labourers sustained grievous injuries in the accident. The police have launched investigation in the case.
