Wall collapse in Mahim, landslide in Malabar Hill, 45 tree falls across the city | Mumbai news

MUMBAI: Wall collapses, tree falls, and a minor landslide followed heavy rains in the city on Monday. At 9.51am, a wall and a second-floor staircase of the Haji Kasam chawl building on Pitambar Lane, Mahim, collapsed. The building was old and in dire need of repair, cessed under MHADA, said locals in the area. Two senior citizen residents were trapped on the second floor and were rescued by the fire bridge.

At around 2pm, the hilly structure touching the back of Ruby Hills, another MHADA-cessed building on Ridge Road, and facing Walkeshwar Road, broke out. As the rocks spilt out on the road, the residents of the ground-plus-two-storeyed building quickly evacuated and were safe.

“The residents and shopkeepers are safe,” said Sanjay Shirke, a shop owner who also owns a room in the building. “Three residents have been sent to a transit camp in the area, while the rest are shops. Weak foundations of the building and some illegal practices by the owner have made it weak. The debris from the fallen rocks was cleaned up, and the next steps will be discussed tomorrow.”

Residents of Malabar Hill suspected high-rise constructions and tree felling weakened the hill and caused the landslide. They fear for the stability of their homes and area as this comes a day after a portion of Banganga Tank’s compound wall collapsed due to heavy rainfall.

There were nine complaints of house and wall collapses reported, seven of which were from the island city, and one each in the eastern and western suburbs. No casualties were recorded. Of the 45 calls of falling trees and branches received by the civic body, 34 were from the island city. A 24-year-old man, Sairaj Pawar, was injured after a tree branch at St Xavier’s College fell. He was admitted to St Geoge’s Hospital, where his condition was stable. As many as 25 complaints of short circuits were recorded.