5 dead, 29 injured in Mumbai foot over-bridge collapse
Governance

5 dead, 29 injured in Mumbai foot over-bridge collapse

The foot over-bridge is outside CST station and just a stone's throw from the headquarters of the BMC, the civic body that manages it.

   
Foot overbridge near CST

Foot overbridge near CST | @contact2r/ Twitter

Mumbai: A portion of the foot over-bridge outside Mumbai’s landmark Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus collapsed Thursday evening.

According to PTI , five persons were killed and 29 injured in the incident.

The bridge was under the jurisdiction of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the headquarters of which is located just a stone’s throw away from it.

According to a statement issued by the civic body, the incident occurred at 7.35 pm and was reported at 8.14 pm.

In a preliminary statement, the civic body said that the 16 injured persons have been rushed to the nearby St. George and GT Hospitals. The Mumbai Fire Brigade, the Mumbai Police and the 108 ambulance service have been mobilised, the civic body said.

The exact cause of the incident is still not known.

“Foot overbridge connecting CST platform 1 north end with BT lane near Times of India building has collapsed,” the Mumbai Police tweeted. “Injured persons are being shifted to hospitals. Traffic affected. Commuters to use alternate routes. Senior officers are on spot.”


Also read: There are so many people in charge of Mumbai’s 314 bridges, but everyone’s clueless


Not the first time

Mumbai has seen a string of mishaps due to creaky old bridges being overcrowded.

Last year, a portion of the 70-metre-long bridge, a pedestrian pathway at the Andheri railway station, crumbled sparking a blame game between the BMC and the Western Railway.

A year before that, 23 people died due to a stampede on the crowded foot over-bridge at the Elphinstone railway station, now rechristened Prabhadevi.


Also read: Year after Mumbai train station stampede killed 23, commuters say not much has changed