7 killed, several injured after Bengaluru hospital wall collapses during rain
Bengaluru: In a tragic incident, the compound wall of the Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital in Shivajinagar, Bengaluru, collapsed on Wednesday evening, claiming the lives of seven people, including a six-year-old girl, and injuring seven others.
The deceased include two women, four men, and a young girl. Of the seven injured, three are residents of Kerala who had come to Bengaluru for a visit, informed Deputy Commissioner of Police (East) Vikram Amathe.
According to the DH media news report, the injured have been identified as Preeti (51), Sija (45), and Maya (51); all of them hail from the Ernakulam district of Kerala and were travelling to Bengaluru. Jabeen Taj (47), Mubeen Taj (49), Ajju (35), and Mohammed Sajid (21) are originally from Bihar and are all residents of Bengaluru.
Some of these individuals were vendors who had set up their shops on the footpath, while others were buyers or passersby who had taken shelter there to escape the rain. The wall was approximately 12 feet high and one foot thick.
The accident was reportedly caused by heavy rainfall combined with the additional structural load resulting from ongoing construction work on the decades-old building. This incident occurred around 5:45 PM, trapping more than a dozen people.
"The rain began around 5 pm in the area, and there was a thunderstorm. Around 5.45 pm, the wall collapsed all of a sudden. The bodies had to be pulled from under the rubble. Many people were injured; some may have lost their legs," said a vendor and eyewitness.
Following the incident, local residents immediately took the victims to a nearby hospital before rescue personnel could arrive.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah visited the hospital, met with the victims, and announced a compensation of ₹5 lakh for the kin of each deceased person.
He pulled up the hospital staff and officials of the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) for alleged negligence. He directed the GBA officials to submit a detailed inquiry report regarding the circumstances that led to this incident, fix responsibility, and take appropriate action against those found to be negligent.
