1 dead, 2 injured after hospital building collapses in Kottayam

Kottayam (Kerala): A woman died and at least two others, in cluding a child, were injured after a part of the Government Medical Col lege Hospital in Kottayam collapsed on Thursday, po lice said here. The injured an 11-year old girl and a hospital staff member were admitted to the casualty department shortly after the incident.

The woman was pulled out from the debris more than two hours later and was declared dead. Her identity was later confirmed as Bindu, a resi dent of Thalayolaparambu. She was at the hospital as a bystander for her daughter, who is being treated there.

The child, identified as Aleena Vincent from Meenangadi in Wayanad, had been standing next to her grandmother, who was undergoing treatment in Ward 10. Aleena's injuries are said to be not serious. Amal Pradeep, a hospi tal casualty staff member, suffered minor injuries after being hit by a trolley during the evacuation.

Officials said the collapsed portion was part of the bathroom complex of Ward 14 in a three-storey block. The hospital authorities described it as an unused section, though a bystand er woman later claimed it had been in use. Health Minister Veena George and Cooperation Minister V N Vasavan vis ited the site soon after the incident.

They claimed that the damaged section was an old, disused toilet area in a block that housed three wards. One of the bystander women disputed the minister's claim and said it was not an unused area.

"No one told us not to use the toilets there," she told reporters. The opposition Congress party accused the ministers of trying to downplay the seriousness of the accident.