A four-storey building under construction collapsed here on Tuesday night at Diesel Colony in Kazipet.
Residents in the nearby houses had rushed out to see the new building’s cellar when the first floor caved in, tilting to the right. The building watchman, Bikshpathi (63), who was said to be sleeping in the ground floor was feared dead. Police and fire personnel arrived at the spot and evacuated the people living in the houses around the collapsed building, which belongs to a retired government employee, K. Ravinder Reddy.
The district administration inspected the area on Wednesday and has decided to demolish it. Additional rescue teams from Bhupalapally and Hyderabad have been called to safely raze the building without causing any damage to the other houses.
The construction was almost complete with painting works going on. The workers had left the building by evening, just a few hours before the mishap.
Warangal Urban Collector K. Amrapali said services of experts from National Institute of Technology and engineering professors would be used for the rescue operation. “The building had all the required permissions for a G+3 storey construction. Since the building is in a dangerous condition, we will have to demolish it completely. NDRF teams from Hyderabad are drafted for the operation,” she said.
City Police Commissioner V. Ravinder said a thorough enquiry into the incident would be taken up and legal action would be taken against the owner in case of any negligence in the construction.