At least 1 dead, several feared trapped as building collapses in Bengaluru amid heavy downpour

At least one person has been confirmed dead and over a dozen others are feared trapped after an under-construction building collapsed amid heavy rains in Bengaluru's Babusapalya area on Oct 22, officials said..

Two rescue vans from the fire and emergency departments were immediately pressed into rescue operations.

"Rescue operation is being carried out in a coordinated effort with help from other agencies," a senior police officer was quoted as saying by PTI.

Chief Minister Karnataka Siddaramaiah and his Deputy D.K. Shivakumar made several phone calls to the jurisdictional Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Devaraj to get updates about the incident and ongoing rescue operation amid rains, officials were quoted as saying.

Minister for Urban Development and local MLA Byrathi Suresh rushed to the spot to monitor the rescue operations.

The building collapse took place on the day several parts of the city witnessed heavy rain.

Ahmed, who had a contract for tile work at the site was quoted as saying there were 20 laborers, including tile workers, concrete workers, and plumbers in the building when it collapsed.

He alleged that the basement was weak, which may have led to the collapse.

Sources were quoted as saying that the building only had permission for four floors, but construction violations took place.

Meanwhile five teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) were deployed to evacuate marooned people with the help of coracles in many inaundated areas.

North Bengaluru bore the brunt of the rains as several areas were flooded in and around Yelahanka, PTI reported.

According to the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, Yelahanka received 157 mm (six inches) of rain in just six hours till October 22 morning. Kendriya Vihar in Yelahanka resembled a river with waist-deep water.

Normal life was thrown out of gear in Northern Bengaluru on Oct 22 due to the waterlogging. People preferred staying indoors, while many passengers missed their flights, trains and buses.

Children were not able to go to schools in areas that were flooded. Many houses in low-lying areas and near lakes were inundated, PTI reported.