Four persons were killed and five injured when a 40-year-old building collapsed on Chetty Street in Coimbatore on Sunday night.
According to preliminary investigation, the building developed cracks a week ago following which a tenant’s family had vacated it. One more tenant was about to vacate on Monday.
The names of the dead were given as Gopalswami, 72, his wife Kasturiammal, 65, their son Manikandan, 42, and Swetha, 25. Four members of the family which owns the building and a tenant were rescued from the debris. Gopalswami and family lived in an adjacent house on which portions of the building fell. Swetha was daughter-in-law of building owner Vanaja. Neighbours rescued four persons before the Fire and Rescue Services personnel reached the spot.
The police said the building on the congested Chetty Street collapsed around 9 p.m. Sunday. Residents said that people were staying on the ground floor and the first floor of the building. Sarojini, her husband Babu and son Prabhu lived on the ground floor of the building. They had planned to vacate the building on Monday. While Babu and Prabhu managed to come out as the building collapsed, Sarojini was rescued by neighbours.
Neighbours rescued at least four people before the Fire and Rescue Services personnel reached the spot. Kasturiammal’s body was taken out from the debris around 5 p.m. Monday. One of her legs had been severed. Manikandan, who was admitted to the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital (CMCH), died on Monday evening.
The debris of the fallen building also caused damage to two other buildings on both sides.
Coimbatore District Collector K. Rajamani said rain was not the reason behind the collapse of the building. “Instructions have been given to local bodies to inspect old buildings in the city and check their stability,” he said.
Sources in the district administration said directions were already in place for local bodies to check stability of old buildings every year. The five persons who were rescued from the building were under observation at CMCH. The house falls within a containment zone, the officials said.
Solatium announced
Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Monday condoled the death of four persons in the building collapse and announced a solatium of ₹1 lakh to families of each of the victims from the Chief Minister's Public Relief Fund.
In a statement, Mr. Palaniswami wished a speedy recovery to the injured persons. He asked Coimbatore Collector to ensure swift relief and rescue operations at the site.
