74kmph storm, rain leave 4 dead, and a trail of destruction across Delhi

NEW DELHI: Four people died in separate wall collapse incidents in central and outer Delhi due to rain and storms in the city on Saturday.

The thunderstorm blew across the city at up to 74kmph and struck at around 3pm, knocking down several trees, delaying 300 flights and impacting road traffic. The squalls also caused damage to the RRTS station in New Ashok Nagar.

In the first incident, three people - a 65-year-old contractor and two labourers - lost their lives, while one person was injured after the wall of an under-construction hotel collapsed in Nabi Karim area. Police said the collapse occurred due to heavy rain.

In the second case, a 35-year-old man died after a wall collapsed in Shahbad Dairy.

The deceased in the Nabi Karim collapse were identified as Prabhu, the contractor, and two labourers, Niranjan (40) and Roshan (35). Chuttan, another labourer, is receiving treatment at a hospital.

2 victims were breadwinners

Police said they received a PCR call at around 6.20pm Saturday about the collapse of a wall on Arakashan Road. Upon reaching the location, officers found that construction work was under way, including the development of a basement. One of the walls had collapsed, reportedly due to rain.

DCP (central) M Harsha Vardhan said a case was registered and further investigation was on to determine whether safety norms were violated at the site.
Cops said a rescue operation was ongoing, and at the time of the incident, 16 labourers were working.

Vinod, who came to Delhi and was staying at a hotel near the accident site, recounted: “When I returned to the hotel after attending a meeting, I saw a crowd gathered. There was a collapse, and people were trying to rescue those trapped. People were claiming that four were trapped. When I asked if anyone called the police, no one responded — they were busy making videos. I then alerted the cops myself. I believe there was a delay of 10–15 minutes before the incident was reported to police.”

Sanoj Kumar, a labourer who was present at the site, told TOI that he and others helped rescue the victims. “We were working when a wall, about 35 feet long and 18 inches thick, suddenly collapsed, leaving no time to escape. Work had been halted due to the rain, and about 10 minutes after it stopped, they resumed working — then the wall came down,” he said.

While police said that four people were trapped, Sanoj claimed that five were injured. He added that Niranjan, one of the deceased, was the sole breadwinner for his family, which included six children and his wife, earning just Rs 500 per day.

Sanoj also mentioned that Prabhu, another victim, was the only earning member of his family. “Both were working here for the past few months,” he added.

Sanoj said three of the workers were completely crushed under the debris, while the others survived because their heads remained above the rubble. “The hotel construction was ongoing for the past two months, and no safety gear was provided,” he added.

PCR caller Jitender Kumar reported that two individuals, Ashok and Sumit (36), were injured due to the incident. Both were taken to the hospital, where Ashok was declared brought dead. Preliminary probe revealed that the victims were engaged in welding work at the site.

CM Rekha Gupta stated, “DM (Central), SDM (Karol Bagh), MCD and Delhi Police officials visited the site. Rescue operations were carried out by DFS and NDRF personnel. DM (Central) has been directed to provide all assistance to the next of kin of the deceased and injured.”