Woman, 2 granddaughters killed as 3-storey building collapses in Gujarat

Ahmedabad, July 24

An elderly woman and her two granddaughters were killed as a dilapidated three-storey building collapsed in Jam Khambhalia town in Gujarat’s Devbhumi Dwarka district amid heavy rain in the state’s Saurashtra region, police said on Wednesday.

The incident occurred on Tuesday evening in Gagwani Fali locality of the town and bodies of the three victims were brought out after a nearly six-hour-long rescue operation that continued till midnight, and five people were rescued, they said.

Teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), police and the fire department removed debris that fell on the victims after the building collapsed as a result of heavy rain that continued to batter the region, the police said.

The victims were identified as Kesharben Kanjaria (65), Pritiben Kanjaria (15) and Payalben Kanjaria (18). Five others who were trapped in the debris were rescued by the locals, the police said, adding that the bodies of the deceased were sent to a government hospital for post-mortem.

Saurashtra and south Gujarat districts continued to receive heavy rain, inundating low-lying areas as dams overflowed and monsoon rivers swelled beyond their danger marks, officials said.

In the 24 hours ending 6 am on Wednesday, Umarpada taluka in Surat district received 276 mm rainfall. Heavy rain also battered Navsari, Junagadh, Devbhumi Dwarka, Kutch, Dangs and Tapi districts, causing flooding in low-lying areas, they said.

Administrations in the affected districts issued an advisory for people, asking them not to step out unless necessary and not to try crossing overflowing causeways.

The Navsari collector has ordered the educational institutes in the district to remain shut on Wednesday in view of heavy rain.