Wall collapses in Mumbai: At least 6 cars buried

Heavy rains triggered the collapse of a wall in Mumbai's Wadala East, forcing over 200 residents to vacate their flats and burring at least six cars.

Fortunately, no injuries were reported due to the incident. According to officials at Antop Hill police station, the wall of Llyod Estate caved into the adjoining site of Dosti Reality Limited at around 5am. It was also stated that the soil under Llyod Estate had begun to loosen up and erode after Dosti Realty started its construction a year ago.

Following the event, residents of around 240 flats vacated the building. Nauzer Dalal, a resident and committee member of Llyod Estate said "Since May last year, around the perimeter of my building, the ground began to tilt and sink. Even the tiles in the parking lot sank. We realized the soil underneath was giving away due to the construction of Dosti Realty. So we got a structural audit done." According to the report, the soil underneath the building was indeed eroding but the structure was considered safe since few pillars, on the Dosti Realty site side, were weakened. Another resident, Simran Parmar said "If you notice, the podium of the building is also tilted slightly. These are our homes and looking at long term, it is unsafe to live in the building. We want the builder to give us alternate homes till he reconstructs these buildings for us." The residents feel vulnerable so they ask that the builder reconstruct their building entirely.

On the other hand, a partner at Dosti Reality, Kartik Garodia, said they will check if the construction on their site was the reason behind the wall collapse. "Then we will take whatever steps necessary to ensure the safety of the residents of Llyod Estate," Garodia added.

A week after the incident, the Institution of Engineers (IEI), Maharashtra, and the Practising Engineers, Architects and Town Planners Association (PEATA) have decided to press the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to register geotechnical engineers. The organizations believe that geotechnical engineers will benefit the community during incidents like this. A senior architect adds "The geotechnical engineer surveys the soil profile and provides data for the structural engineer to prepare the designs. So a soil failure is a mistake on their end. But since they are not registered engineers, they are not held responsible."