More than 30 working professionals at a paying guest (PG) facility in Vayunandana Layout in Hebbal-Kempapura limits (Ward No 7) had miraculously escaped Wednesday morning.
The five-storey building they stayed in suddenly developed cracks and began tilting. As the high-rise leaned over the neighbouring building, panic swept the locality dotted with similar structures.
Fire and emergency personnel rushed to the spot and evacuated the building. Officials suspected that construction work in the adjacent plot had caused the building to tilt.
The building owner Rahul, a local resident, had leased it to Tulasi, who runs the ‘Harshith PG’.
“Owners of the neighbouring site dug deeper than the foundation of this building and that weakened the structure,” said an official.
The BBMP and firemen have decided to raze the tilted building. The BBMP commissioner ordered legal action against the owner of the site, contractor and engineer involved in the construction work.
City police commissioner Bhaskar Rao reviewed the situation at the scene. DCP (North-East) Bheemashankar S Guled told DH that the incident was reported around 7.30 am.
“The occupants were either students or employees at nearby IT firms. They rushed out as the building began tilting. Fearing the worst, they raised an alarm and helped occupants of adjacent buildings to get out,” Guled said.
As BBMP and fire service officials prepared to raze the building, the police evacuated the adjacent buildings to ensure safety. “More than 160 residents in 35 adjacent buildings have been evacuated on emergency grounds and have been housed at the Amruthahalli government school and Amruthahalli government hospital,” Guled tweeted.
BBMP commissioner B H Anil Kumar said residents were shifted to another building belonging to the owner.