Under-construction Karnataka building crashes, 2 killed, 70 trapped

DHARWAD: Two people died and over 70 others were trapped under debris after a four-storey under-construction commercial complex building collapsed in Dharwad, Karnataka, at around 3.50 pm on Tuesday.

Dharwad deputy commissioner Deepa, who is supervising rescue operations, said the identity of the deceased was yet to be ascertained.

At least 30 persons, including a boy, were pulled out of the rubble; at least 100 police and fire brigade personnel were deployed in the rescue operation. The trapped persons included construction workers who were reportedly in the building on Belagavi Road in Kumareshwar Nagar, near the new central bus stand.

Four shops on the ground floor were rented out even before the building was completed and several cars were parked near the building.

The building belongs to Gangadhar Shintri, father-in-law of former Congress minister Vinay Kulkarni. “He has assured he’ll pay the medical expenses of the injured,’’ officials said. Rescuers deployed heavy machinery to shift concrete slabs and used drills to reach people buried under the debris while sniffer dogs searched for signs of life. Officials said rescuers were exercising caution while operating the machines so that those trapped were not harmed.