Flyover Collapse Death Toll Reaches 23

The death toll due to a flyover collapse in Kalkota, India went up to 23 after steel and concrete were cleared by rescuers. Rescue workers used jackhammers and cranes to clear the debris.

Ninety people were rescued after a section of a flyover under construction broke off in one end before slamming into vehicles and pedestrians on the road below. Police Commissioner Ajay Tyagi said a good number of the people who were rescued were seriously injured. Tyagi added that there may still be a good number of people trapped under the debris.

Images of the scene were broadcast by television channels. It should auto-rickshaws and people being crushed by the fallen concrete that missed a number of cars caught in a traffic jam in a commercial district close to Girish Park.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee immediate went to the scene on Thursday. The center-left party of Banerjee is seeking re-election in the West Bengal state next month. The 61-year-old Banerjee said the people responsible for the flyover collapse will not go unpunished. She also said the previous state government is responsible after the flyover contract was awarded in 2007.

However, the chief minister also has to deal with issues on the project that was beleaguered with delays and safety concerns. In November, a newspaper reported that Banerjee wanted the project to be finished by February after it was delayed by five years. Project engineers were concerned on making this deadline.

Flyover Collapse Death Toll Reaches 23 - image credit: bbc.com

The flyover collapse may be a major issue in the election, which is one of the five that will be held this month. The election may also provide indications whether the two-year rule of Prime Minister Narendra Modi' will continue. The construction of the flyover was implemented by IVRCL, whose shares went down on Thursday.

A senior manager of IVRCL was condemned throughout the country after the disaster was described as “an act of God.” Operations director A.G.K. Murthy said they did not use materials of inferior quality and the company was in a state of shock.

Rescue operations were slow at the start as residents formed crowds while trying to helped people trapped under the debris. However, part of the wreckage was removed with the arrival of three cranes. It also provided access to vehicles under the rubble after the flyover collapse.

Harrowing images on the news showed body parts of a dead person sticking from under a steel girder. Images also showed unconscious man was carried away by rescuers.

The lack of access into the scene made it difficult to bring survivors to hospitals. The area has numerous buildings on both sides. Witnesses said the safety standards were not strictly implemented. Ravindra Kumar Gupta said hundreds of workers would work on the flyover every night and they cook as well as sleep at the site by day. Gupta added that the government was aiming to finish the structure before the elections, which meant the workers had a tight deadline to keep. Gupta also said it was possible that the hasty construction caused the flyover collapse.

Posted by James Fried on Friday April 01 2016, 12:55 PM EDT. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Uncategorized. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0