2 dead, 40 feared trapped as under-construction building collapses in Karnataka's Dharwad

An under-construction building collapsed at Kumareshwar Nagar, Dharwad in Karnataka on Tuesday, killing two people, injuring five and leaving at least 40 trapped, police said.

#SpotVisuals: An under-construction building collapses in Kumareshwar Nagar, Dharwad, many feared trapped; Search and rescue operation underway#Karnataka pic.twitter.com/zOfdnPH2zD

— ANI (@ANI) March 19, 2019

A search and rescue operation has been launched by the concerned authorities, ANI reported. The cause of the building collapse is still not known. Rescuers have managed to rescue 24 people. One of the deceased has been identified as 35-year-old Salim. At least 20 people have been admitted in civil hospital, while three are referred to KIMS in Hubli.

Local media reported that District Collector Deepa Cholan, police and fire tenders have rushed to the site of the accident. Local authorities have sought rescue teams and vehicles from nearby stations to speed up the rescue operation.

Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy has expressed shock over the incident and said that he has ordered the Chief Secretary to supervise rescue operations. "Shocked to learn about the collapse of an under-construction building in Dharwad. I've instructed the Chief Secretary to supervise rescue operations. I have also directed the CS to send additional resources and expert rescuers by a special flight to #Dharwad," tweeted Kumaraswamy.

Karnataka CM tweets "Shocked to learn about the collapse of an under-construction building in Dharwad. I've instructed the Chief Secretary to supervise rescue operations. I have also directed the CS to send additional resources and expert rescuers by a special flight to #Dharwad" pic.twitter.com/6OL2ixIcXV — ANI (@ANI) March 19, 2019

The owners of the under-construction building are identified as Basavraj Nigadi, Gangadhar Shintre and Ravi Sobrad. ANI reported that one of the owners Gangadhar Shintre is father-in-law of Congress leader Vinay Kulkani.