Billboard Collapse In India Kills At Least 14, Injures Dozens More

MUMBAI, India (AP) — A large billboard that collapsed amid raging thunderstorms in Mumbai killed at least 14 people and injured 75 others, reports said on Tuesday.

A rescue operation was continuing Tuesday morning, and authorities told the Press Trust of India news agency that 89 people had been rescued since the incident occurred on Monday evening.

The rains, accompanied by high winds, caused the 30-meter-tall (100-foot-tall) billboard to fall onto a gas station in the suburb of Ghatkopar. Videos on social media and television showed the billboard shaking amid heavy winds before giving way. It collapsed onto several cars parked in the gas station, flattening and crushing them to the ground.

On Monday night, rescuers were rummaging through the wreckage to look for bodies as they used heavy equipment to cut through the metal girders attached to the billboard.

Rescue workers continued to clear the area on Tuesday, which still had mangled cars and debris.

A city official told PTI that more than 125 rescuers were on site, including gas cutter teams, using cranes to clear the wreckage.

Police are investigating the incident and say the billboard was illegally installed, officials told PTI.

The officials said 32 of the injured people had already been discharged from the hospital.

India has heavy rain and severe floods during the monsoon season between June and September that brings most of its annual rainfall. The rain is crucial for agriculture but often causes extensive damage.

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