Two more people were rescued on Saturday afternoon from the debris of the collapsed building in Janta Mazdoor Colony, located under the Welcome Police Station area in North-East Delhi. The two rescues bring the number of people saved till now to 5, even as many more are feared trapped under the debris.
The two rescued people were immediately rushed to Guru Teg Bahadur (GTB) Hospital by a Centralised Accident and Trauma Services (CATS) ambulance for medical treatment. With several more people still feared trapped, search and rescue operations continue on a war footing, with teams from the Delhi Fire Service, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), and local police working amid difficult conditions.
Rescue officials say the narrow lanes of the densely populated colony are significantly hampering the movement of heavy equipment and personnel, making the operation extremely challenging. Despite these constraints, teams are using cutters, sniffer dogs, and other specialised equipment to locate and extricate any survivors.
The building collapse occurred early on Saturday morning, around 7:00 A.M., when a residential building suddenly collapsed in Gali No. 5 of Janta Mazdoor Colony. The three-floor structure housed multiple families, and panic spread quickly throughout the area as screams for help were heard from beneath the debris.
Speaking on the situation, Additional DCP Sandeep Lama said, "At around 7:15 A.M., a building collapsed in Gali No. 5, Welcome area. It was a three-storey building, and members of the Matroop family were among those inside.
Some people have been rescued so far, while rescue operations are still ongoing." Eyewitnesses offered harrowing accounts. One local said, "At around 6:45 A.M., the lights suddenly went out. When I looked, I saw that a building had collapsed.
Police officers arrived, and five people have been rescued so far. There's no way to enter from the other side, it's a narrow lane." Seven fire tenders are currently on site, with rescue efforts focussed on carefully clearing debris without endangering those trapped.
Preliminary reports suggest the building was old and structurally weak. Officials suspect that recent heavy rainfall may have further weakened the structure, leading to the collapse. The local administration has launched an enquiry into the cause and has begun surveying nearby buildings to assess structural integrity.