CHANDIGARH: At least seven workers were killed, and five others injured after a concrete retention wall collapsed at a construction site of Signature Global Society near Gurugram's Sidhrawali village on Monday night.
According to sources, the accident happened near the Gurugram-Rewari border, when the wall of a sewage treatment plant for an upcoming residential project collapsed, causing debris and soil to cave in and trapping the workers at the basement.
Around 15 labourers were working at the time of the accident, workers told police.
Immediately after the incident, other workers present at the site along with passers-by, initiated rescue efforts and pulled out the trapped labourers with their bare hands.
The State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), fire brigade and civil defence reached the spot in some time and took over the rescue operation. Senior police officials and district authorities arrived at the spot and monitored the rescue efforts.
According to an official, the incident took place around 8 pm on Monday but the authorities came to know about it only after an hour.
During the rescue operation, 12 people were pulled out from the debris, among which seven labourers were declared dead. Five people sustained serious injuries and are undergoing treatment at the Government District Hospital.
Six of the seven deceased have been identified as Satish, Bhagirath, Milan, Shiv Shankar, Mangal and Parmeshwar. Four of those hospitalised with injured --Chotelal, Deendayal, Shivkant and Indrajeet-- remained critical.
Family members of the deceased have demanded officials from the Signature Global Society to meet them. The buildre is yet to release any statement regarding the incident.
Meanwhile, police have launched an investigation to determine the cause of the collapse and to examine whether safety protocols were followed at the construction site.