At least eight people have been killed due to a wall collapse near Mohan Baba Mandir in Harinagar, Jaitpur, on Saturday. The fire department received a call regarding the incident at 9:16 am, and immediately, fire tenders were rushed to the spot along with the police teams, according to Delhi Fire Services. The wall collapsed due to heavy rain overnight, according to the police. The incident happened amid the ongoing festivities of Raksha Bandhan today.
The national capital witnessed the downpour begin late at 11 pm on Friday, leading to heavy rain overnight and affecting multiple parts of the city. The incident took the lives of around seven people reportedly living in adjacent jhuggies near the Mohan Baba Mandir. The deceased included two young girls, both approximately seven years old, along with Ravi Bul, aged 27, Rubina, aged 25, Safiqul, a resident of Assam, aged 27, Muttus, a resident of West Bengal, aged 50, and Doli, a resident of Assam, aged 28. Additionally, Hasibul, aged 25, was injured and rushed to the hospital.
What did the police say?
Aishwarya Sharma, Additional DCP South East (Delhi), said, “There is an old temple here, and next to it are old jhuggies where scrap dealers live. The wall collapsed due to heavy rain overnight. 8 people were trapped and were rescued and taken to the hospital. They are undergoing treatment. We don’t know how many people died, but according to us, 3-4 people are seriously injured, who may not survive. We have now evacuated these jhuggies so that no such incident occurs in future.”
Rainfall and waterlogging
Heavy rainfall across Delhi has become an obstacle for the people amid the Raksha Bandhan festivities festivalsand spoiled the festival spirit. The were reportedly severe waterlogging and jams that left many people stranded midway and many stuck at home. Amid this, several flights were also delayed due to the rain, which were set to depart for their destination.
Due to the overnight downpour India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a red alert early Saturday. According to the Indian Express by 8.30 am Saturday, a prime location of Delhi, recorded 78.7 mm rainfall in the last 24 hours, while Pragati Maidan recorded 100.3 mm. Lodhi Road and Pusa recorded 80.7 mm and 69 mm of rainfall, respectively.
“Over half a dozen calls of wall collapse incidents have been received since morning”, Indian Express reported, citing an official from the Delhi Fire Services (DFS)