This is the second house collapse within 24 hours in the city. On Tuesday, three persons were injured when the rear portion of a three-storeyed building collapsed in Null Bazar at Grant Road at around 5.20 pm.

On Wednesday, around 10.30 pm people on the ground floor of Joshi Building noticed a part of the top floor crumbling. They immediately raised an alarm and within minutes everyone from the building spilled out on the Pitha Cross Lane, near Flora Fountain.

However, while others escaped with minor injuries, 41-year-old Harish Anchan was trapped under the debris.

Eyewitnesses said Harish had first helped his aged mother out and had again entered the building to salvage some valuables. He never came back. Taranath Kotiyan, who is a relative of the deceased, said he was not at home when the buildingcrashed. ``As the top floors started crumbling all my relatives managed to come down, except my cousin Harish,'' said Kotiyan.

Police and fire brigade sources have identified the injured as: Rukkaiya Kotiyan (74), Baby Rukkaiya Kotiyan (50), Santosh Kumar Salian (15) and Vijay Rukkaiya (38). The injured were rushed to the St George Hospital and were later discharged.

Four fire engines and two ambulances were pressed into the relief and rescue efforts by the authorities. Deputy Chief Engineer of MHADA (South Mumbai), M N Wanikar, who was present at the crash site this afternoon, said alternate accommodation had been provided to the affected families in Colaba and Borivli. Citing the congested area plan of Fort as the main reason for the poor maintenance of the building, Wanikar added: ``Like most of the house collapses, it was the toilet end of the building that caved in due to heavy water seepage.'' Only an air passage separates Joshi Building from its adjoining structure and the passage is justthree-feet wide.

Pointing to the decaying wooden pillars and several cracks in the wall, Wanikar, however, said no complaint had been received from the residents.Residents of the adjoining Latif building too have been asked to evacuate their houses as a precautionary measure.