Bengaluru building collapse: Death toll climbs to 7

Seven people died after four residential buildings partially collapsed in Bengaluru`s Ejipura area

Bengaluru: The death toll in Bengaluru building collapse incident has now climbed to seven, informed state Home Minister Ramalinga Reddy.

On Monday morning, four residential buildings partially collapsed in Bengaluru's Ejipura area. Several people are still trapped under debris.

"Six people are dead, out of which five were residents of the building and one was a neighbour," Reddy had said while visiting the site.

Footage of workers rescuing a little child from the debris has emerged:

"A compensation of Rs 5 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased and Rs 50,000 to injured has been announced," said state development minister K.J George. 

Earlier, local authorites said the mishap occured due to cylinder blast.

Refuting it, Reddy said, "Cylinders on both ground and first floor had no gas in them. So it is unlikely that the buildings collapsed due to blast." 

Earlier, an official from the Commissioner of Police said, "An LPG cylinder exploded on the ground floor of a two-storeyed building sometime between 6 and 7 a.m. in Ejipura area. The building collapsed. We have rescued four persons from the debris, while two others have been rushed to a nearby hospital."

An official from the Karnataka State Fire and Emergency Services said at least four more were suspected to be trapped under the debris.

Some 40 fire services personnel were carrying out the rescue operations, the official added.

The city has been reeling under incessant rains over weekend. About 19 people died in rain-related incidents. Three members of a family died after roof of their house collapsed due to heavy and incessant rain in Gadag district's Gajendragad on Sunday.

With agency inputs