Johnson Cherian.
Seven persons were killed when a two-storey building in the congested bylanes of Ejipura in Bengaluru collapsed on Monday morning after a suspected gas cylinder blast. Seven persons sustained injuries in the incident.
Miraculously, three-year-old Sanjana survived the building crash that killed her parents. She was sleeping next to a sturdy cupboard and it saved her.
For three hours, rescuers used heavy machines to remove tonnes of debris and household material. Suddenly, the plaintive cries of the child were heard.
Fire and Emergency Services officials removed concrete slabs with their hands and eventually, a frail Sanjana, scarred by burns, was pulled out around 10 a.m.
Fire officials suspect that a leak from a gas cylinder would have caused a blast. Around 6.30 a.m., neighbours heard the explosion and subsequently the building collapsed. By 2.30 p.m., the bodies of those dead were recovered.
“We heard a loud blast and we rushed out of our homes around 6.40 a.m.” said Vinod Kumar, who lives in the house opposite the building, which was home to four families..
Cause not yet known
Fire and police officials are yet to ascertain the cause of the explosion.
“The victims did have burn marks, but there is no conclusive proof there was an explosion that could have weakened the building,” said Chandragutpa, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central).
During rescue operations, four members of the Fire and Emergency personnel were injured.
The Karnataka government has announced a compensation of ₹5lakh to the family of the deceased.
On the ground floor, Sharavana, 28, and his seven-month pregnant wife, Ashwini, 25, were killed, while Sanjana, the three-year-old, survived with injuries. On the first floor, where two families lived, firemen recovered the bodies of Ravichandra, 46, Kalavathi, 68, Malashri, 25, Hariprasad, 18, and Pavan Kalyan, 19.
Kalavathi, Ashwini’s aunt, said the family had moved into the building four years ago when Sharavana got a job in a private firm that manufactures air filters.
