3 killed, 3 injured in balcony collapse in Odisha's Cuttack

At least three persons, including a minor boy, were killed and three others seriously injured when the balcony of an old apartment building collapsed and fell on an adjacent house here on Saturday, police said. The incident took place at Mani Sahu Chhak in the city, and all the affected persons belong to one family and were staying at an asbestos-roofed house close to the old apartment. ''The balcony of the apartment fell on our house. My husband, son and grandson died in the incident,'' said the woman of the house. The deceased persons were identified as Abdul Jalil (60), Abdul Zaheed (30), and Abdul Mujahid (5). The injured persons were undergoing treatment at the hospital. Fire Service personnel rescued all six persons and took them to SCB Medical College and Hospital, where doctors declared three of them dead, police said. The local people alleged that the building was earlier declared unsafe by city authorities. However, despite repeated warnings, it was neither demolished nor vacated, they alleged.