New Delhi: More than 30 hours after a multi-storey building collapsed in Burari here, four members of a family were pulled out alive from the debris in a late-night operation, officials said on Wednesday.
They said Rajesh (30), his wife Gangotri (26), and sons Prince (6) and Ritik (3) — who were rescued on Tuesday night — have been hospitalised.
The family was trapped inside a space created after a ceiling slab of the newly constructed building fell on a cooking gas cylinder. It prevented the family members from being crushed under the debris, according to the officials.
A video showing the family members sitting inside an ambulance with two children went viral on different social media platforms. "My elder son is six years old and my younger son is three. We are thankful to God that we are saved," Rajesh can be heard telling reporters.
The four-storey residential building near Oscar Public School collapsed on Monday evening, killing five people, including two minors.
"The rescue operation is still underway and is likely to continue till late Wednesday night. Multiple teams -- Delhi Police, NDRF and Delhi Fire Services -- are working round-the-clock," Deputy Commissioner of Police (North) Raja Banthia said.
So far, 21 people have been pulled out from the rubble. While 16 of them were alive, five died, he said. "The rescue operation is still underway. More people could be trapped under the rubble.
"Teams are taking extra precautions while carrying out the rescue operation. The NDRF teams are also using highly advanced gadgets to know about alive people," said the police officer.
Police have registered an FIR against the building owner Yogendra Bhati under various sections of the BNS, including culpable homicide, and arrested him. The police said they have also called their dog squad to look for people under the rubble.
