Mumbai building crashes, traps many

Mumbai: A four-storeyed residential building collapsed near J.J. Hospital in south Mumbai on Thursday, officials said.

More than two dozen people were living in the old and dilapidated Arsiwala building on Maulana Shaukat Ali Road. Rescue efforts have been launched, according to eye-witnesses.

This is the first major building collapse after Tuesday's Mumbai deluge, and the second in five days after the Chandivali crash which claimed six lives. At least four people have been killed and 13 injured after a ground plus four-storeyed building collapsed in Mumbai's Byculla area on Thursday morning.

Dozens are feared trapped under the rubble. An NDRF team has arrived to the spot and rescue operations are underway. The collapses has been categorised as a level III emergency by the Mumbai Fire Birgade. At least 90 NDRF personnel are at the spot. The dog squad has also been pressed into service.

The injured are being rushed to the nearby JJ hospital. It is unclear whether the recent downpour in the financial capital had a role to play in the building collapse. The building was reduced to rubble.

The Arsiwala building, about 110 years old, is located on Maulana Shaukat Ali Road, Pakmodia street. Locals say there was a godown on the top floor, but it could not be confirmed.