Residents of the building evacuated before alerting the fire control room and the BBMP.

Panic gripped residents of Kempapura in north Bengaluru as a four-storey building started tilting when the adjacent vacant site was being dug up to construct a basement on Wednesday.

Residents of the building evacuated before alerting the fire control room and the BBMP.

Officials of the BBMP, fire control room and the police are at the spot.

BBMP officials said there was no sign of building bylaw violations. "The excavation work on the adjacent site led to the tilt. The technical experts' team is analysing the situation and we will act as per their advice," said BBMP assistant engineer Pushpalatha.

Though digging work has been stopped, tension prevails among residents of neighbouring buildings as the building in the narrow lane stands dangerously tilted towards the road. Many of them have also left their buildings fearing the worse and are awaiting action from the officials.

No has been one hurt in the incident, a fire officer said.

“Some construction work attached to the particular building in 2nd cross Ramaiah Layout in Kempapura (behind the house) has caused this. One JCB was digging mud out for laying foundation behind the house and the earth has been loosened due to this,” said Uday Kumar, who runs an iron shop on the same road.

“The building has 36 residents, five floors with three houses on each floor.

We were shocked to see the building tilting in the morning today. All of us have come out and are worried about our belongings. One resident went up to at least bring his clothes. But by the time he went up, he felt the staircase shaking. He ran down horrified,” said Tulsi K, another resident.

Owner of the house, Rahul alias Suresh Chandra Jain told The Hindu that the JCB hit the pillar of the house while digging. He said he will lodge a complaint with the police as the owner of the adjacent house did not even inform him about taking up digging work.

Another adjacent house has also been damaged.

“There is no gap in between houses. The road is very narrow. No place even to take up even rescue operations, say like the vehicle of the fire and emergency services also can’t come in,” another resident said.

Other residents are worried that the building may fall on their houses, he said.