Pune waste plant collapse: Death toll rises to three as rescue operations continue

The death toll in the Moshi waste processing unit collapse near Pune rose to three after rescuers recovered two more bodies. Rescue teams continue searching for those trapped, while heavy rain and toxic gases hamper operations at the accident site

Pune: The death toll in the Moshi waste processing unit collapse incident near Pune reached three after two bodies were recovered from the debris on Saturday, officials said. While the body of one Akshay Sawant was recovered in the afternoon, rescuers managed to take out four persons from the rubble some time later, one of whom was declared dead by doctors, they added.

“Sunil Korke (40), a resident of Alandi, was pulled out of the debris and taken to the Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial (YCM) Hospital, where doctors declared him brought dead,” an official said.

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The three others recovered from the rubble are Sunny Mane (39), a resident of Gandharvanagari in Moshi, Mahesh Kumbhar (33) from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, and Nagesh Gaikwad (26), a resident of Sanjay Gandhi Nagar in Moshi. They have been shifted to hospital for medical examination, the official said without giving any detail about their condition or medical status.

On Wednesday, a three-storey administrative building of Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation’s (PCMC’s) Waste-to-Energy (WTE) plant in Moshi collapsed after a heap of garbage fell onto the structure, trapping around 18 individuals under the rubble.

While seven of the victims were pulled out of the debris hours after the accident, two more persons were rescued after midnight on Wednesday. A body was recovered on Thursday morning, an NDRF official had said.

Meanwhile, relatives of the trapped persons are questioning the local administration’s pace of the rescue operation. Around 15 excavators, including specialised demolition machines, are engaged in the operation being carried out by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and other agencies, officials said on Saturday.

The search and rescue operation involving personnel of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the fire brigade and other agencies was continuing at the site till late evening, officials said.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar visited the site and reviewed the rescue operation.

She said a few more people are still trapped, and search operations are underway to locate them. The Deputy CM said toxic gases emanating from the garbage heap are posing difficulties for the rescue teams, while heavy rains have delayed rescue and investigation.

“An inquiry into the unfortunate incident is currently in progress. Appropriate action will be taken based on the findings of the investigation,” she told reporters. Pawar said instructions have been given to the administration to ensure that the body found during the rescue operation is identified by family members.

“Financial aid is being provided by the government and the municipal corporation. From the day the incident occurred, I had been continuously monitoring the situation. I had issued orders to deploy the Army and the NDRF,” the Deputy Chief Minister said.

Recalling that the late Deputy CM Ajit Pawar had reviewed the site in the past, Sunetra said she would conduct a detailed review of the matter. “The municipal corporation, the state government, and the (private) company will hold a joint meeting to discuss the issue,” she added.