By IANS,
New Delhi : Five people were injured Monday when three huge cranes and a launching girder toppled at the same Delhi Metro site where six people died a day earlier when a part of the elevated rail track under construction came down in a heap of concrete and steel.
The latest tragedy occurred when hundreds of Delhi Metro workers and engineers were gathered at the site of the earlier accident overseeing the continuing efforts to remove tonnes of debris.
Suddenly, one after another, three cranes collapsed amid a deafening roar, apparently unable to bear the weight of the launching girder, triggering a panic run in Zamrudpur area in south Delhi.
A large number of policemen who had been deployed since Sunday also bolted following the accident.
One of the cranes, a 16-wheeled monster, fell on a row of shops.
It took a while for calm to be restored. The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), also in south Delhi, said five people had been injured.
“Five people have been admitted and more injured are on their way,” AIIMS Trauma Centre spokesperson Nirmal Thakur told IANS.
A witness explained what happened Monday.
“There was a deafening noise and there was dust all over. I ran from there with my child and wife,” said Kishore Kumar, who runs a tea shop just 50 meters away.
Delhi Metro Rail Corp (DMRC) spokesperson Anuj Dayal said no one had been seriously injured and no one was trapped in the debris.
“There is a risk involved during relief operations. Outsiders were not allowed at the site. Now the barricades will be made stricter. We can only request public to stay away,” Dayal said.
On Sunday, the elevated stretch of the Metro track being built to connect central Delhi with Badarpur in the far south collapsed, killing six people and injuring 15 workers.
It was the worst accident in the history of Delhi Metro.
The impact of Sunday’s disaster caused a huge crater in the tarred road and burst a water pipe.
And Monday’s accident itself took place about two and a half hours after a portion of the launching girder fell from a great height, temporarily halting salvage operations.
The accidents found an echo in the Indian parliament Monday where Urban Development Minister S. Jaipal Reddy praised Delhi Metro’s safety record and denied that the company was hurrying to complete the project ahead of the 2010 Commonwealth Games.
DMRC chairman E. Sreedharan quit after Sunday’s disaster accepting moral responsibility, but the government did not accept his resignation.