Crane Collapses During Kurla Demolition, Injuring 10 and Damaging Structures
Ten people were injured and multiple structures damaged when a crane deployed for the demolition of an abandoned 17-storey building collapsed near Qureshi Nagar and Samrat Ashok Nagar between Kurla and Trombay around 2 am on August 21.
The accident occurred while a hydraulic crane was lifting a poklane machine to the upper floors of the building. A portion of the machinery collapsed onto railway overhead equipment (OHE) high-tension wires, neighbouring slum hutments, the road, an MHADA compound wall, and three to four four-wheelers.
Eight of the injured were taken to Sion Hospital: Jagrulla Nabi Moh. Khan, 63; three-month-old Ahemed Niyaz Ahemed; Atikur Reman, 60; Hakum Sheikh, 36; Numan Khan, 21; Rehman Khan, 19; Suraj Gaur, 10; and Akbar, 40. Two others, Raju Gaud, 35, and Aarti Gaud, 30, were admitted to Kurla Bhabha Hospital. All victims were reported to be in stable condition.
Following the mishap, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) imposed a penalty of Rs 25 lakh on the contractor, M/s Total Construction Pvt Ltd. The MMRDA directed the contractor to bear the full cost of medical treatments and provide compensation for personal injuries, damaged hutments, and vehicles. The authority stated that medical treatment had been prioritised and noted that further action would depend on an investigation into lapses.
Central Railway confirmed that passenger rail services remained unaffected, stating that the impacted section between Kurla and Trombay is primarily a goods line and falls under the responsibility of MMRDA.
The G+16 structure, which features six wings and around 500 tenements, was constructed in 2005 by M/s HDIL under a Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) scheme intended for airport project-affected dwellers. The building remained incomplete and unoccupied. Following HDIL’s bankruptcy, the SRA handed the property to MMRDA on an as-is-where-is basis. A 2021 structural audit declared the building unsafe and uninhabitable, leading MMRDA to initiate manual demolition.
