No fewer than 14 persons have been killed and dozens injured after a giant billboard collapsed during a sudden storm in the Indian city of Mumbai.
According to the police, the billboard, measuring 70m by 50m, fell onto houses and a petrol station in the city on Monday.
Emergency services say a few people are trapped under it, and a rescue operation is underway.
The government of Maharashtra state, where Mumbai is located, has ordered an inquiry into the incident.
According to BBC, footage on local news channels shows the huge billboard swaying in the wind before giving way and crashing into the buildings near a busy road in the city’s eastern suburb of Ghatkopar. Several vehicles were crushed in the accident.
Emergency teams were seen working through the wreckage in photos from the scene. Dramatic video footage shows rescue workers pulling out a victim from under the fallen billboard and using power tools to cut the metal.
An official at the scene said, “We have rescued around 80 people safely.
“One red car has been severely damaged. We suspect there are some people trapped inside.”
Mumbai’s civic authorities said in a statement posted on X, formerly Twitter, that “speedy winds” had caused the collapse. Several agencies, including the police, fire, and national disaster response teams, were involved in the rescue operation.
Authorities also say that the billboard was several times the permitted size, and the agency that put it up did not have permission.
Also, the company has been notified, and they are asked to dismantle the structure and remove all similar hoardings from the city with immediate effect.
