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Mumbai, July 17 (IANS): The death toll in Thursday's crash of the 80-year-old Bhanushali Building in south Mumbai climbed to six with at least five bodies recovered from the debris during the night, and 18 others were injured, the BMC Disaster Control said here on Friday.
Among the victims were Kusum P. Gupta, 45, Jyotsna P. Gupta, 50, Padmalal M. Gupta, 51, and two others who are still unidentified.
A woman who was rescued on Thursday night Neha Gupta, 45, continues to be critical in Sir J. J. Hospital, while two others injured are Bhalchandra Kandu, 48 and Shailesh Bhalchandra Kandu, 17.
The rescue operations continued as 2-3 other persons were feared trapped in the rubble even as bouts of heavy rains continued to lash the city.
The first two major house-crashes of Mumbai in the current monsoon includes the five-storied Bhanushali Building in Fort, near the GPO and a three-storied tenement in Plot No. 8B of Collector Compound in Malvani, Malad west which collapsed on an adjoining two-storied tenement.
In both incidents, a total of eight persons have lost their lives so far, more than 30 are injured, and over a dozen evacuated safely.
Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, Housing Minister Jitendra Awhad, Mayor Kishori Pednekar, Municipal Commissioner I. S. Chahal, Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh and other senior officials rushed to the site and reviewed the relief and rescue operations in south Mumbai.
The victims of the Malad crash have been identified as a 23-year old woman Anjum S. Shaikh, and an 18-year old youth Faizal W. Sayyed. The 13 others rescued from the Malad crash were treated for minor injuries and discharged from the Hayat Hospital nearby.
Mumbai Suburban District Guardian Minister Aditya Thackeray, who visited the Malad crash site, said each of the victim families would be given a compensation of Rs 400,000, while the families of the injured will get Rs 5,000 besides treatment.
"We will take strict action against the building owners if they are found violating the laws and book them for culpable homicide not amounting to murder," warned Mayor Pednekar.