India's building collapse death toll reaches 60

Rescuers are trying to pull bodies and survivors from under the concrete ruins of a collapsed 11-story building on Tuesday, three days after it toppled and killed dozens of people in southern India, officials said. Photo: AP

The death toll in a building collapse in southern India has risen to 60, as hundreds of workers came close to clearing the massive ruins of the 11-story structure, police said today.
Police Inspector-General Sandeep Rai Rathore said 27 people had been rescued since the weekend — the last one on Tuesday — from under the enormous heap of broken concrete slabs, twisted iron girders and concrete dust in one of the worst building collapses in India in decades.
The excavation was likely to be completed on Friday, he said.
Police have arrested six construction company officials for alleged criminal negligence and violation of building codes. Authorities are investigating the cause of Saturday's collapse in Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu state.