HYDERABAD: At least five migrant workers were killed and 12 others injured after a heavy-duty crane collapsed on them at a steel fabrication unit on the city outskirts on Monday afternoon.Two of the injured have been admitted to the ICU of a nearby private hospital, police said.The workers are from Jharkhand, Odisha, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. The Shankarpally police have booked a case under Section 104 (A) (causing death by negligence) of the BNS against the owner of the unit and began an investigation.Police said the incident occurred around 3 pm in Mahalingapuram village of Rangareddy district’s Shankarpally mandal, when the workers were taking shelter under a shed following a sudden downpour. “They did not realize that cranes were stationed at the site. Within minutes, two cranes, owing to bad weather, collapsed and fell onto the shed, crushing those underneath,” said a police officer.District authorities and police rushed to the spot and shifted the injured workers to a nearby private hospital, where five of them were declared dead on arrival.Police identified the deceased as Nagendra Mathur, Ali Hussain, Sajim, Mukesh Kumar and Sonu — all aged under 30. “We have shifted the bodies to a nearby govt hospital for post-mortem examination. They will be handed over to their family members thereafter,” said Mir Mudssar Ali, station house officer (SHO), Shankarpally police station.Police said the industrial unit houses cranes that are used for handling heavy metal and construction material. It appears that owing to structural failure and instability, caused by adverse weather conditions, the crane collapsed.“We are investigating to ascertain the exact cause of the collapse. It will be done once the debris is cleared from the area,” the SHO said, adding: “We will also examine whether there was any negligence or violation of safety norms at the site, and action will be taken accordingly against those responsible.”
