'Hero' neighbours among 1st responders

NEW DELHI: As the dust settled and the cries for help grew louder, a remarkable tale of humanity unfolded. Neighbours and rescuers scrambling among the rubble turned heroes digging out people to safety.

Taslim and Salman were among the first to respond to the collapse of the building on Street No. 1 in Shakti Vihar, Mustafabad. They rushed to the disaster site to see how they could help. They had no rescue equipment but plenty of determination and worked tirelessly, ultimately saving at least six lives.

Taslim recalled the harrowing scene, "For 15-20 minutes, there was only white dust, from which one could hear cries for help. We began lifting the broken cement blocks, working alongside others to rescue trapped people." The six people they pulled out were sent to hospitals.

Soon the professional rescue teams arrived on the scene, but that early intervention by the do-gooders proved crucial. The rescuers faced challenges in operating in the congested area, especially since the building had collapsed like a pancake, limiting the use of their equipment. According to Mohsen Shahedi, DIG (Operations), NDRF, such a collapse significantly reduces survival chances due to floors collapsing onto each other leaving little possibility of voids.

Rescue teams typically use specialised equipment like wall detectors to locate trapped survivors. However, on this occasion, a rescue official explained, "We couldn't use wall detectors due to significant disturbances since they rely on thermal waves. The movement of people was also a hindrance. Instead, we had to rely on cutters and drill machines."

According to NDRF officials, the narrow lane forced them to park their vehicles far from the spot, making it difficult to bring in dumpers to move debris and aid in the search. Fire tenders were parked at a distance and only one JCB excavator could be deployed. A canine squad was called to the spot to assist in the search and help the personnel pinpoint spots where the victims could be lying trapped.

Two neighbouring buildings were also damaged and its residents had to be evacuated. "If those buildings hadn't been affected, we would have had more space for rescue work," a fire officer said.

According to rescuers, an empty space nearby was useful for throwing the debris. "Because of space constraints, we had no other option but to stand on the rubble and work, which is not desirable because victims might be lying below at that spot. Even while using the drilling machine, we had to be very careful," said a rescuer.