Removal of debris from the collapsed Tamil Nadu Urban Housing Development Board (TNUHDB) building in Tiruvottiyur and demolition of the combined structure was put on hold on Tuesday as the exercise was reportedly having an impact on nearby buildings.
A wing of ‘D’ block of tenement on Village Street in Tiruvottiyur collapsed on Monday. Residents of adjoining blocks ‘C’ and ‘E’ said they felt their buildings shaking lightly on Tuesday morning as earthquake equipment was working to clear the debris.
P. Omana, a resident of ‘E’ block, said the plaster broke from the ceiling and fell.
“We realized there were new cracks in the building,” he said, adding that a portion of a sun shed also fell from the ‘F’ block. D. Seema, a resident of ‘C’ block, said that she too felt some impact and almost everyone came out of the building.
TM Thaniyarasu, a local DMK functionary who helped everyone evacuate before the building collapsed, said debris removal work was immediately halted after residents reported the impact. “The plan was to gradually remove the debris and help the residents of the 28 units that collapsed save their belongings as much as possible. However, the work was stopped after posing a threat to the nearby buildings,” he said.
A senior TNUHDB official said the work would resume after the technical committee constituted to evaluate the quality of the remaining buildings at the site submitted its report.
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