Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday announced financial compensation of Rs 2 lakh for the families of the dead and Rs 50,000 for the injured after a portion of a cold storage facility collapsed in Prayagraj’s Phaphamau area.
According to Prayagraj DM Manish Kumar Verma, around eight people were injured today when a part of the building collapsed and were taken to the hospital.
Prime Minister Modi expressed grief over this incident and prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured.
Prime Minister’s Office wrote on Twitter, “We are deeply saddened by the accident due to building collapse in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. My thoughts are with the affected people and their families in this difficult time. May the injured get well soon. The families of each deceased will be given an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh from PMNRF. Rs 50,000 will be given to the injured: Prime Minister’s Office.”
This morning, Prayagraj DM Manish Kumar Verma told reporters, “Around 8 people have been taken to the hospital. Relief and rescue operations are underway. The situation will become clear in the next few days as to how many people have been injured and how many have escaped safely. We are preparing a list of everyone. A magisterial inquiry will be conducted into this matter.”
An eyewitness present at the spot said, “People from Bihar work here. This incident happened around 2 pm. I pulled some people out of the debris and myself took out 5 bodies. The wall had collapsed. The work of loading and unloading goods was going on and a person was sitting and eating when the wall collapsed. It was a potato factory, everything has been destroyed.”
Chief Fire Officer Chandra Mohan Sharma said that after the incident, there was heavy presence of ammonia gas in the area. Authorities rescued at least 10 people from the debris, who were taken to hospital for treatment.
The chief fire officer said, “The incident occurred around 2 pm. The wall of the cold storage had collapsed. As soon as I reached the spot, there was a huge amount of ammonia gas, which is used in cold storage. That’s why we started the rescue operation and also kept the smoke under control. The rescue operation is still going on. At least 10 people have been pulled out from the debris and all have been taken to the hospital.”