Secunderabad hotel collapse: Rescuers look for survivors

Hyderabad, July 9: Rescuers scrambled Tuesday to extricate two to three people who are still feared to be trapped under the rubble of a hotel in Secunderabad that collapsed Monday.

Rescue teams from National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) sifted through the debris looking for survivors.

Two-storey building of City Light hotel in Secunderabad, the twin city of Hyderabad, collapsed early Monday, killing 13 people and injuring 23.

Officials of Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) said the experts were moving cautiously while clearing debris to prevent any harm to those who may be trapped.

Families of three missing people, including two hotel employees, waited anxiously at the site with the hope of finding their dear ones alive.

The rescue workers pulled out 20 people from the rubble. The injured were admitted to Gandhi Hospital, where the condition of two of them is stated to be critical.

Police have booked hotel owner Hasan Boluki for negligence. Hasan's son Mustafa Boluki died in the mishap.

Hasan, who was relieved by his son a few minutes before the mishap, suffered cardiac arrest upon hearing about his death. He was earlier believed to have been injured.

IANS