Death toll in Kolkata warehouse collapse rises to 16

While five more workers were reported dead in the Taratala warehouse collapse in Kolkata, the death toll rose to 16 on Friday, June 26, 2026. It was announced that 3 people who were rescued from the accident scene on Friday morning died in the hospital where they were taken. Two workers were injured and died in the last 24 hours at a state-owned health facility.

Warehouse collapse in Kolkata: Six people from a family in Bihar came to work in Kolkata’s Taratala warehouse, only three returned home

According to the police, 33 people were rescued from the accident scene, 16 workers lost their lives and 17 were treated at a state-owned health facility.

Six people were arrested in connection with the accident, including the tenant of the land on which the warehouse was built, a civil engineer and former special officer (OSD) of Kolkata Municipal Corporation, former Mayor Firhad Hakim.

Rescue efforts are being carried out at the accident site by National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel who are trying to find any signs of life in the debris. Equipment of Indian Railways is also being used and Indian Army personnel are involved in the rescue efforts. A senior official of NDRF said the crash site was analyzed and three specific areas were identified where debris would be “aggressively cut”.

“Rescue operations are continuing. NDRF is managing the rescue operation. They are doing their best and hope that they can complete the rescue work by tonight if the weather is suitable,” the Chief Minister said on Friday.

Mr. Adhikari also said that the Kolkata Police Commissioner was supervising the investigation and the State government had decided to blacklist the architect, planner and auditor firm involved in the project.

On Thursday, June 25, the Chief Minister announced the suspension of all ongoing commercial construction projects in the Kolkata Municipal Corporation area and adjoining areas, adding that building plans in these areas will undergo a thorough inspection. Mr. Adhikari had said that a high-level committee chaired by IAS officer Rajesh Pandey has been constituted for this purpose and it will be presented within seven days.

At 12.07 on Wednesday, June 24, the roof of the warehouse under construction collapsed and many workers were trapped under the rubble. The land was leased to a private operator by the Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port Authority for the construction of a warehouse.

While locals claimed that more than 40 workers were working at the construction site when the accident occurred, police said there was no record of how many workers were at the construction site when the construction collapsed.

Saying that the construction plan of the warehouse was flawed, the Chief Minister blamed the “sins of the previous Trinamool Congress regime” for the accident. The incident also raised questions about the role played by former mayor Firhad Hakim, who joined the Trinamool rebel group led by Ritabrata Banerjee. Former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s loyalists and a section of the BJP leadership have raised the demand for the former Mayor’s arrest.