One of the employees rescued alive. (Express photo/Jasbir Malhi)

The cell phone saved the life of Harjeet Singh, who remained trapped under the debris of the collapsed building for around eight hours. He continued to speak with his colleagues and the members of the NDRF team over the phone due to which his location was traced and ultimately he was saved.

The JCB operator Harwinder Singh, who was found dead under the debris, also made a phone call to his family members and urged them to save him. His family members including his father and brother were on the spot. He made the last call to his family members at around 5 pm but after that, he did not respond to the phone calls.

Harpreet Singh, a friend of Harjeet Singh told Chandigarh Newsline that he made four calls to Harjeet and Harjeet responded to all the calls and told him that he was trapped in his office.

“The NDRF team came at around 2 30 pm. We told them that Harjeet was responding to the phone calls following which the team members also called him. He told them his location following which sniffer dogs were pressed into service and they located him” said, Harpreet Singh.

Davinder Singh, a friend of the JCB operator, said that Harwinder made a call to his family that he was buried under a building. He added that Harwinder also told his family that he was working at Kharar.

“His family members reached at the location and found that the rescue operation was going on. He made the last call to his brother at around 5 pm and said that he was feeling suffocated and urged them to help him but at around 8:45 pm the NDRF team found him dead,” Davinder Singh added.