Woman’s death in building collapse sparks debate over ‘delayed’ rescue op

A woman was killed and two others were injured as a portion of a building of the Kottayam Medical College Hospital (MCH) in Kerala collapsed on Thursday.

The collapse occurred in the bathroom area behind wards 14 and 11, part of a building that authorities claimed were not in active use. The deceased was identified as Bindu, 56, a resident of Thalayolaparambu in the Kottayam district, who was in the hospital as a bystander to her daughter. Her body was discovered under the debris nearly two hours after the collapse.

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Her death triggered outrage as rescue operations allegedly lost pace after Health Minister Veena George and Cooperation Minister V N Vasavan, who were in town, claimed that the building was not in use and ruled out chances of people buried under the debris.

The ministers were in Kottayam to attend a regional review meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. After the building collapse, they reached the spot and told the media that the collapsed area was closed and not in use.

Both Veena George and Vasavan ruled out the possibility of more people being trapped under the debris and repeatedly stated that it was a closed portion used for waste disposal. However, moments later, cries from Bindhu’s daughter alerted others that someone might still be trapped.Bindu’s daughter Navami repeatedly raised the alarm over her missing mother. She said her mother had gone to the washroom but was not attending calls.

Following this, around 1 pm, rescue teams resumed search operations. The rescue teams found Bindu trapped in the rubble and pulled her out, more than two hours after the building collapsed.They rushed her to the emergency department in the medical college hospital, however she later died.

The approach of the ministers has led to widespread protests from the Opposition Congress. Congress MLAs Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan and Chandy Oommen alleged that ministers V N Vasavan and Veena George tried to conceal facts and mislead people. Chandy Oommen, MLA from the Puthuppally constituency in Kottayam, who reached the spot after the incident, stated that the rescue was delayed due to the irresponsible statements made by the ministers. “They tried to play down the issue, saying the collapsed portion was a closed area,’’ he said.

Later, Veena George said the district collector was asked to investigate the matter. “There was no delay in the rescue efforts. The death of the bystander is unfortunate, and we did everything possible. I reacted based on the information I received. There were difficulties in getting the earth mover to the location,” she said.

Allegations have surfaced that the rescue operation was delayed based on the assumption that no one was trapped.The death of the woman following the collapse of the building at Kottayam Medical College has triggered an intense debate over the delay in the rescue mission.

The state government, which has been embroiled in the row over equipment shortage at the Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram, now faces flak for negligence in the maintenance of hospital infrastructure. A senior doctor from Thiruvananthapuram Medical College recently has gone public about severe delays in the supply of surgical equipment.