10 injured as lift crashes Cops Suspect Elevator Gave Way Due To Overloading

Mumbai: Ten people escaped with minor injuries after an elevator in a residential building in Goregaon came crashing down from the fifth to the ground floor, apparently due to overloading. 

    The incident occurred at the new Chamunda Towers in Goregaon (West) around 1pm on Sunday. Most of the victims had gone to attend a housewarming party on the seventh floor. One of the guests, Darshan Gill, said they were headed for the seventh floor but as they reached the fifth floor, the lift suddenly went spiralling down. "We were going up when suddenly we heard a loud noise, as if something snapped. The next thing we knew was that the lift was speeding downwards," said Gill, who was with his two sons and a granddaughter. He have sustained three minor fractures. "Thankfully, my sons and grandchild escaped unhurt." 

    All the victims were taken to Surana Hospital in Malad where five were discharged after being administered first aid. The rest, who sustained minor fractures, have been hospitalized but would be discharged by Monday. Vice-president of the hospital Afzal Sheikh said, "The impact of the fall led to some suffering compression fractures." 

    BMC engineers visited the building for an inspection. The police said the lift could have crashed because of overloading though they were yet to draw a conclusion. "Quite a few people entered the lift on the ground floor. Some more people got in on the second floor. This seems to be one of the factors behind the fall," said a resident who was in the lift at the time of the incident. 

    "We are trying to verify the exact reason behind the crash. Engineers will conduct an inspection and send a report to us before we can come to a conclusion," said an officer from the Goregaon (West) police station.

CLOSE SHAVE: After the elevator in Chamunda Towers (left) in Goregaon collapsed, those in the lift sustained minor injuries