10 killed, 22 injured in building collapse

Hyderabad, July 8 : At least 10 people were killed and 22 others injured when a hotel building collapsed in Secunderabad in the early hours of Monday.

The two-storey building at Rashtrapati Road, housing City Light Hotel, collapsed at around 6.30 AM on Monday. While 10 bodies have been recovered from the spot, nearly 15 people are still feared trapped in the debris. The GHCM, City Police and a special team of CISF are carrying out the rescue operations.

As many as 15 people were shifted to the Gandhi Hospital where the condition of a few injured persons is said to be critical.

City Police Commissioner Anurag Sharma and GHMC Commissioner MT Krishna Babu supervised the rescued operations.

Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy visited the site along with ministers – Dr J Geetha Reddy, Danam Nagender and M Mukesh Goud. He also ordered a probe into the collapse. He directed the officials to provide immediate relief to the injured.

It may be mentioned that City Lights Hotel building was among 57 buildings in Secunderabad area which were served demolition notices by the GHMC for their dilapidated condition. However, the building owner obtained a stay from the court to halt the demolition.

Besides the dilapidated condition, gas leakage followed by an explosion is suspected to be the reasons for building collapse. However, the officials maintained that the real cause of collapse would be known only after a thorough investigation. INN