Five people had a miraculous escape after a two-storey dilapidated building they were living in on Millers Road collapsed late on Monday. Shops and a car parked in the vicinity were damaged in the accident.
Kilpauk police said the poorly-maintained structure, which is over 50 years old, had been the home of Uttam Chand Jain (51) and his family for many years.
Around 11 p.m. on Monday, Mr. Jain and his family heard cracks on the structure and they rushed out of their first-floor house. “Within minutes, a portion of the first floor came crumbling down, showering the shops and the street below with debris. Fortunately, no one was injured in the collapse,” said a policeman attached to the Kilpauk station.
A number of shops including a cell phone outlet, a tailoring unit, and an automobile spare parts store were damaged in the accident. All of them were locked. A sedan parked adjacent to the structure was completely crushed by the falling debris.
Over 20 firemen, in three fire tenders from the Kilpauk fire station, rushed to the spot and cleared the debris for over an hour. The premises have been sealed.
