THANE: Six persons, including four women and a two-year-old child, were killed and four others were injured after a slab of the top floor of a four-storey building in Kalyan collapsed on the lower floors on Tuesday afternoon, officials said.
The slab of the fourth floor caved in around 2:15 PM, and the debris crashed through the lower floors of the Saptashrungi Building located in Mangalaragho Nagar area in Kalyan East.
"The slab from the fourth floor had collapsed to the ground floor," said a senior police inspector.
The deceased were identified as Namaswi Shrikant Shelar (2), Pramila Kalcharan Sahu (56), Sunita Neelanchal Sahu (38), Sushila Narayan Gujar (78), Venkat Bhima Chavan (42) and Sujata Manoj Wadi (38).
Four people were injured in the incident, including two children aged four, who were admitted to different hospitals.
Emergency response teams from the Kalyan Dombivli Municipal Corporation's Fire Department and the TDRF (Thane Disaster Response Force) are actively engaged in clearing the debris and searching for any additional victims.
"Rescue operations are underway with full force. The building has been cordoned off, and structural safety checks will follow once the immediate rescue work is complete," the police officer added.
Police have registered a case and are investigating the cause of the collapse.
Maharashtra deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde said that he is in touch with the local civic authorities who are engaged in the rescue operation.
He said they are extending all help and the injured are admitted to the nearby civic hospital.
“If needed, the injured people will be admitted into the private hospital as well. State government will soon announce financial help to these deceased people's family members,” Shinde said.