Mira Road crane collapse kills 21-year-old, injures two at construction site

What residents described as a disaster waiting to happen finally unfolded on Thursday evening when a massive crane installed at JP Infrarsquos underconstruction multilevel car parking project suddenly snapped and crashed into the premises of the neighbouring JK Iris residential complex in Kashigaon Mira Road East The accident claimed the life of a 21yearold left two others including the crane operator injured and reduced several parked vehicles to twisted metalThe crashAccording to information gathered by midday the accident occurred between 730 pm and 8 pm JP Infra is constructing a multilevel parking building adjacent to JK Iris with the crane installed on the 11th floor The crane suddenly collapsed with a large portion crashing into the residential complexFate prevented bigger tragedyFire brigade and rescue personnel work at the site on ThursdayEvery evening around 2025 senior citizens women and children gather outside the Hanuman temple inside the society premises for the daily aarti The crane crashed barely a few metres away from the temple On Thursday heavy rain kept most devotees indoors while many others had left to participate in the Jagannath Rath Yatra in Puri Odisha ldquoHad it been a regular evening dozens of people would have been standing exactly where the crane fellrdquo residents saidLife lost damages causedMuzammil Kholkar 21 was sitting in the society premises where he often spent his evenings Tragically a portion of the falling crane landed directly on him causing fatal injuries Residents rushed him to a nearby hospital where doctors declared him dead on arrival The accident also left the crane operator seriously injured while a senior citizen suffered minor injuries Several cars and motorcycles parked inside the society were extensively damagedDreams cut shortThe crane fell inside the JK Iris premises close to where people would gather for daily pujaFamily members said Muzammil had recently completed his graduation and was pursuing a computer course His father a Bollywood stuntman and action director was scheduled to leave for Kashmir on Friday for the shooting of the series lsquo108 Base Hospital UrirsquoLocals repeatedly raised concernsMuzammilrsquos father who was attending a meeting in Borivli when he received a phone call saying his son had met with an accident said he initially thought it would be a minor bike accident ldquoBut when I reached the spot I found my son dead beneath the collapsed crane We repeatedly warned authorities before the tragedy For a long time we feared something like this would happen but nobody paid attention Todayrsquos tragedy could have been prevented Those responsible ignored every warningrdquo he allegedlsquoBook company owners toorsquoThe family has demanded that the owners of JP Infra be booked alleging that the accident was the result of negligence ldquoThe police are only talking about taking action against the contractor and the site supervisor But the main responsibility lies with the builder The owner of JP Infra should also be named as an accused I have learnt that the owner is very close to a senior minister Perhaps that is why the police are reluctant to register an FIR against himrdquo Muzammilrsquos father allegedADR registered probe underwayThe tragedy has also raised questions over the police response Hours after the fatal accident police had registered only an Accidental Death Report ADR prompting the victimrsquos family to demand the registration of an FIR against the builder When contacted DCP Rahul Chauhan told midday ldquoOur preliminary inquiry has revealed that JP Infra had awarded the construction contract to one agency which in turn subcontracted the work to another party The investigation is underway Whoever is found responsible even if it is the owner appropriate legal action will be takenrdquoJuly 16Day the crane collapsed