On Wednesday, police reported that an elderly woman and her two granddaughters were killed when a dilapidated three-storey building collapsed in Jam Khambhalia, a town in Gujarat's Devbhumi Dwarka district. The collapse occurred on Tuesday evening in the Gagwani Fali area amid heavy rainfall in the Saurashtra region. A rescue operation that lasted nearly six hours through the night resulted in the recovery of the three victims' bodies and the rescue of five others.
According to the police, teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), along with the police and fire department, worked to remove debris that had fallen on the victims following the building's collapse. The building gave way due to heavy rains that have been persistently affecting the region.
The victims were identified as Kesharben Kanjaria (65), Pritiben Kanjaria (15) and Payalben Kanjaria (18). Five others who were trapped in the debris were rescued by the locals, the police said, adding that the bodies of the deceased were sent to a government hospital for post-mortem.
Officials reported that Saurashtra and south Gujarat districts continued to experience heavy rainfall, which has led to the inundation of low-lying areas, overflowing dams, and rivers swelling beyond their danger levels. In the 24 hours ending at 6 a.m. on Wednesday, Umarpada taluka in Surat district recorded 276 mm of rainfall. Additionally, Navsari, Junagadh, Devbhumi Dwarka, Kutch, Dangs, and Tapi districts also faced severe rainfall, resulting in flooding in several low-lying areas.