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| 4 Are Rescued Days After Building Collapse in South India | |
| (about 4 hours later) | |
| NEW DELHI — Four people were rescued on Tuesday from the rubble of a 12-story building on the outskirts of the southern Indian city of Chennai that had collapsed three days before. One of them was a 27-year-old man who got up and walked away from the site on his own once he was freed. | NEW DELHI — Four people were rescued on Tuesday from the rubble of a 12-story building on the outskirts of the southern Indian city of Chennai that had collapsed three days before. One of them was a 27-year-old man who got up and walked away from the site on his own once he was freed. |
| Rescuers also uncovered 10 bodies at the site on Tuesday, bringing the death toll to 30. So far, 47 people have been rescued, most of them construction workers who were finishing work on the building and were lining up to get paid when it fell. No one was yet living in the building, which had 42 apartments, but construction was largely complete when one of its two towers crumpled in heavy rain on Saturday afternoon. | |
| “It looks like the builder deviated from the approved design,” Dr. T. S. Sridhar, a disaster management commissioner in Tamil Nadu State, said in a telephone interview on Tuesday. “The thickness of pillars was reduced to give more space in the rooms. The length of beams was increased to reduce the number of pillars. It needs detailed investigation to figure out the real cause of the collapse.” | |
| Rescuers plan to continue to dig through the rubble on Wednesday, because there is still some uncertainty about whether anyone is still missing, he said. A full investigation will be conducted once the recovery operation is complete. | Rescuers plan to continue to dig through the rubble on Wednesday, because there is still some uncertainty about whether anyone is still missing, he said. A full investigation will be conducted once the recovery operation is complete. |
| The police in Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu, arrested six people on Sunday, including the partners in the construction company, the architect and the structural engineer, and charged them with criminal negligence. | |
| Building collapses are common in India, where construction standards are poor and municipal authorities rarely condemn buildings even when they appear to have dangerous defects. The competition for shelter is so fierce among city residents that unsafe buildings are able to attract tenants. | Building collapses are common in India, where construction standards are poor and municipal authorities rarely condemn buildings even when they appear to have dangerous defects. The competition for shelter is so fierce among city residents that unsafe buildings are able to attract tenants. |
| In January, at least 15 workers were killed when a residential building under construction collapsed in the southern state of Goa. Last September, at least 50 people died when a 33-year-old building collapsed in Mumbai. And in April 2013, at least 72 people were killed when a building collapsed in a suburb of Mumbai. Some of the construction workers were living at the site as they worked on the building. | In January, at least 15 workers were killed when a residential building under construction collapsed in the southern state of Goa. Last September, at least 50 people died when a 33-year-old building collapsed in Mumbai. And in April 2013, at least 72 people were killed when a building collapsed in a suburb of Mumbai. Some of the construction workers were living at the site as they worked on the building. |