Seelampur 4-Storey Building Collapse: Delhi Tragedy Leaves Several Trapped, Rescue Underway

A four-storey house in the Welcome area of Northeast Delhi collapsed early Saturday morning, causing panic and confusion in the area, as many people are thought to be trapped inside it. The collapse happened around 7:00 AM in Janta Colony’s Gali No. 5, near Idgah Road, in the Seelampur area.

Delhi Fire Services and police and local volunteers mounted a rapid rescue effort. So far, eight people have been rescued, including one baby boy, aged 14 months, named Ahmad. According to officials, the boy has been taken to Guru Teg Bahadur (GTB) Hospital, and the other rescued, four men and three women, have been taken to JPC Hospital.  

At the moment, it is not known why the building collapsed. Officials have not said what caused the building to collapse but said it was a sudden and horrible collapse. Officials said it was a structure or what they described as a “pancake collapse,” meaning the floors dropped one over the other leading to little space for survival.  

Local residents say a family of ten lived in the building. The loud crash and the dust cloud awoke the area, and alerted neighbours that something was horribly wrong.

“I was at home when I heard a loud bang. There was dust all over. I ran out and saw that our neighbour’s house had collapsed,” said Asma, a local resident, while speaking to PTI. “We don’t know how many are still inside, but three people from that family have been rescued so far.”

Several morning walkers, who were passing by during the incident, became first responders. They started pulling at debris with bare hands, trying to rescue anyone trapped before the arrival of emergency services.

“Around 7 am, we received a call about the collapse. Seven fire tenders and rescue teams reached the site quickly. Search and rescue efforts are still ongoing,” a senior police officer informed news agency PTI.

Videos shared by ANI show neighbours working alongside emergency personnel to pull out the injured and take away debris. The response from the community has been quick and sincere.

This incident comes just a few months after a similar event in April when a four-storey building collapsed in Delhi’s Mustafabad area killing four people. These near-constant collapses have raised big red flags about the city’s building safety regulations, as well as illegal constructions in the capital’s crowded areas as a whole.

Rescue operations will continue and the main concern remains saving lives and moving waste. But, authorities will still pick up the pieces later by conducting a structural audit on all buildings in close proximity so that they inhibit danger in the future.

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