Three rescued after old building collapses in Delhi’s Kashmere Gate

Three members of a family were rescued after a portion of an old building collapsed in north Delhi’s Kashmere Gate area on Tuesday. Trapped on the second floor, they were safely evacuated by police using an adjoining building, wooden stairs and planks

New Delhi: Three members of a family had a narrow escape after a portion of an old building collapsed in north Delhi’s Kashmere Gate area on Tuesday, trapping them on the second floor before police rescued them, officials said. The incident occurred when a portion of the old building collapsed, causing the ground floor and the staircase leading to the first floor to completely cave in.

The collapse made the building inaccessible, prompting police to cordon off the surrounding area to prevent any further mishap. During a closer inspection, police found three family members trapped on the second floor and unable to come out. The situation was critical as the entire structure appeared to be gradually collapsing.

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With no usable staircase to reach them and precious time crucial to saving their lives, Head Constables Ankur and Anuj Kumar and Constable Praveen Kumar entered the adjacent building. From there, Ankur and Praveen Kumar reached the terrace of the damaged building. Using wooden stairs and planks, they carefully made their way to the trapped family members and successfully rescued all three.

The rescued persons were identified as 78-year-old Lakshmi Devi, her 50-year-old daughter Savita and 43-year-old Hemant Kumar. The rescue operation was carried out by the Kashmere Gate police team before other responding agencies, including the Fire Services and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), could reach the spot, police said.