1st LD Writethru: 2 die as building collapses near Mumbai

At least two people were killed and more than six others feared trapped under the debris after a two-storeyed building collapsed near Mumbai Sunday morning, a senior police official said.

The incident happened in Bhiwandi town on the outskirts of Mumbai.

"While two bodies have been pulled out of the debris, six others of the same family are still feared to be trapped. The other two families who had been living in the building were not there," the official said, on condition of anonymity.

Local TV channels showed footage of fire fighters and disaster management personnel carrying out rescue work at the site.

A probe has been ordered into the incident as well as to how the residents were staying despite an eviction notice served on them, the police official said, adding that strict action will be taken against any civic body official if found guilty.

This is the second such incident in the same town. Some eight people died when a three-storey building had collapsed in the town's JB Nagar last month.

Building collapses are common in India mainly because of poor construction practices fuelled by the demand for low-cost housing among the country's growing middle-class. Endit