THE search and rescue operation at the Ghatkopar hoarding collapse site in Mumbai was called off on Thursday morning, an official of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) said. The operation went on for 66 hours after a giant 120 feet x 120 feet hoarding collapsed on a petrol pump in the Chheda Nagar area during gusty winds on Monday evening. It was called off at 10.30 am on Thursday, the NDRF official said, adding that BMC Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani made an announcement about it after inspecting the site.

 

Shortly after midnight on Wednesday, the bodies of a retired general manager of Air Traffic Control (ATC) and his wife were pulled out from a car stuck underneath the structure, taking the death toll to 16. The accident has also left 75 people injured. The official said that five interconnected girders of the hoarding had to be cut one by one to rescue the bodies of the couple. Gagrani said 16 people have died in the tragedy and the search operation is now complete.