Guj: 5-storey building collapses; people hunt for diamonds

Surat, Dec 14: A five-story building collapsed in Surat on Tuesday (Dec 13) afternoon as the building developed dangerous cracks due to the ongoing construction work at an adjacent plot. Soon after the collapse, large number of people gathered at the spot in search of diamonds as well as other valuables like machines and lenses at the debris as the building housed five diamond-polishing units.

Sources said that the building was residential cum commercial. Following the incident, all the residents of the building were told to vacate.

Kanaiya Mavani, who had a diamond-polishing unit on the second floor of the building said, "I had left diamonds worth nearly Rs 1 crore in the locker of my office. Besides diamonds, there were costly imported machines and equipment worth lakhs."

The unit owners usually take the diamonds with them while closing the office at night. But, all of them had left the offices in the afternoon on Dec 12 to attend some function, according to sources. "There were diamonds worth Rs 50 lakh in my office," said Ramesh Prajapati, an employee of a unit located on the first floor.

Later, Fire-brigades and police managed to push the crowd away from the building. Meanwhile, the police inspector of Mahidharpura police station said that ten policemen and two fire rescue teams will be deployed at the spot till the debris is removed and owners recover their valuables. However, no causalities have been reported in the mishap.

OneIndia News