Maharashtra building collapse: total death toll mounted to 15

With the recovery of two more bodies early on Wednesday, the death toll in the building collapse incident in Maharashtra’s Raigad district mounted to 15, a police official said.

The authorities called off the rescue operation around 11.30 am on Wednesday as all the 17 missing persons- 15 deceased and two rescued, were traced, the official said.

At least nine others, who suffered injuries in the incident, are undergoing treatment in a hospital.

The five-storey building – Tareq Garden- in Mahad town, around 170 kms from Mumbai, collapsed on August 24 evening.

The teams comprising the personnel of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and police, local disaster management team, trekkers and local residents, were engaged in the rescue operation.

On August 25, a four-year-old boy was pulled out alive from under the rubble 19 hours after the incident.

However, it was not all joy as less than half an hour later, the lifeless body of his 30-year-old mother was also recovered from the debris. The body of NaushinNadim Bangi, the child’s mother, was recovered by NDRF personnel 20 minutes later.

As the operation was underway, the rescue team spotted the child under the debris, after which it started clearing the structure with help of gas cutter and other machines.

A 60-year- old woman was also rescued 26 hours after the building collapse.