One worker was killed and 11 were injured after a slab of an under-construction bridge of the metro rail collapsed at the arterial Andheri-Kurla road here on Tuesday evening. The incident took place at around 4.50 p.m. near Hotel Leela at the airport station of the metro site. The cause of the accident is not yet known.
Police said the injured have been admitted to Cooper Hospital and Seven Hills Hospital. “Seven persons were brought to our hospital. One was brought dead. While three patients were found to be seriously injured, three had minor injuries. All the six are currently undergoing treatment,” a doctor at Seven Hills Hospital told The Hindu .
Action after probe
Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) Commissioner Rahul Asthana told reporters that action would be taken against the erring parties after an inquiry.
Social activists have alleged negligence on the part of Mumbai Metro One Private Limited. “This is the seventh death in the last four years on a metro construction site in the city,” Anil Galgali, a social activist, said. He claimed that he had complained about the precarious and accident-prone nature of the spot, around two months ago to MMRDA.
Fire brigade officials said a slab joining a pillar and the staircase had been fitted and some finishing work was going on when it collapsed. “The concrete has come down. We are looking into the cause,” an official who did not wish to identify himself, told The Hindu .
Meanwhile, Mumbai Metro One Private Limited (MMOPL) in a statement said: “We deeply regret the accident that has happened at the Airport Station Metro site, which is being constructed by our contractor HCC [Hindustan Construction Company]. Our emergency response team along with the HCC staff is at the site to provide rescue and relief services which is the topmost and immediate priority for us. We will keep the media and affected parties posted as we obtain more information on the accident.”
The HCC refused comment. There was no official clarification from the construction company about what collapsed, approximately how many workers were present at that time and the possible reason behind the accident.
The dead was identified as 35-year-old Umesh Sahu. “The injured have suffered from polytrauma,” a doctor at Seven Hills Hospital said. Fire brigade officials said they sent five fire engines and four ambulances to the spot soon after they were informed about the accident. More than 100 fire brigade jawans worked for hours to clear the debris and rescue persons from under it. Cranes and bulldozers were also pressed into service.
Traffic snarls were experienced in the area since the accident took place at peak time in the evening when office-goers were returning home.
“Our focus at present is clearing the debris and providing medical attention to the injured. We will look into the cause of the accident soon,” a senior official said.
Meanwhile, official sources said the MMRDA Commissioner apprised Maharashtra Chief Minister about the mishap. Police said investigation was going on.
Mr. Galgali shared a copy of the letter he had written to MMRDA on July 8, 2012. “Mumbai Metro Again failed in [ensuring] security norm at [the] same place — Hotel Leela Turn at Andheri-Kurla Road, Andheri East. This time [it is] only location change; it is the MMOPL’s duty to inspect all sites [on a] regular basis & follow security norms [but] they only believe in dialogues,” the letter stated, referring to a precariously hanging iron rod from the bridge.
Mr. Galgali claimed that the MMRDA had taken up the issue with MMOPL which failed to take the complaint seriously. MMOPL officials were not available for comment.
