Kolkata warehouse collapse toll rises to 11
The toll in the Taratala warehouse collapse in south Kolkata rose to 11 on Thursday as rescue teams, aided by the Army's advanced ground-penetrating radar (GPR) system, continued intensive search operations through the rubble for over 24 hours after the incident, officials said.
Five more people were rescued from the debris in the morning, taking the total number of victims pulled out from under the rubble to 30, according to sources involved in the operation.
According to official sources, 10 people died either at the site of the incident or shortly thereafter, while another injured person succumbed to injuries during treatment on Thursday, taking the toll to 11. The deceased have been identified as Krishna Chowdhury (30) of North 24 Parganas, Rohit Choudhari (40) of Nadia, Rahul Choudhury (17) of Purba Bardhaman, Chandrama Choudhury (60) of Krishnanagar, Pappu Rajak (40) of Shyamnagar, Azgar Hossain (55) of Khidirpur in Kolkata, Sahil Sardar (17) of Basanti, Ghi Kumar (17) of Munger in Bihar, Hasan Imam (44) of Metiabruz, Nabin Singh of Asansol and Ganesh Kalindi (45), who died while undergoing treatment at SSKM Hospital. Nineteen injured are currently undergoing treatment in the state-run hospital, officials said.
Meanwhile, heavy rain stalled the rescue operations for nearly an hour, even as personnel from police, fire services, NDRF and the Army remained deployed at the site. The warehouse was being built on a leasehold plot owned by the Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port in the city. Rescue efforts continued through the night under the supervision of senior state Government and civic officials, including Health Secretary Narayan Swarup Nigam, Kolkata Police Commissioner Ajay Nanda and Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) Commissioner Smita Pandey.
