Five persons, including a two-year-old girl, were buried alive when a complex comprising a warehouse and nine tenements atop and around it caved in at Jai Krishnappa compound in Adugodi here on Tuesday.
The victims are Bhola Singh (22), his brother, Malkhan Singh (18), both street vendors, Padma (43), homemaker, Manjamma (50), labourer, and Savitha (2). Two residents, Rajbir Singh (21) and Rathnamma, suffered minor injuries and were treated in hospital.
Thammanna, a resident of the compound, said that he woke up to a loud noise around 8.45 a.m. and within seconds the tenements and the warehouse had collapsed.
Fire and Emergency Services personnel recovered the bodies of Bhola Singh, Malkan Singh, and Savitha, daughter of Vijay and Sujatha, a labourer couple.
They later recovered the bodies of Padma and Manjamma with the help of earthmovers.
At least six families were living in the nine tenements. Most of the members were daily wage workers who had left for work in the morning. At least three dwellings were unoccupied at the time of the incident.
The police said that most of the tenements were made of mud, and at least 50 years old. Incessant rain over the last few days could have weakened the structure, they suspected.
The warehouse had remained unoccupied for more than a year.
The injured Rajbir Singh has filed a complaint with the Adugodi police who have booked a case under Section 304 of the IPC against the owner Jai Krishnappa.
The Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike has announced compensation of Rs. 1 lakh each for the death.
