CHENNAI: An elderly woman, mother of a police constable had a close shave and escaped with injuries after a portion of the ceiling caved in at Kilpauk police quarters collapsed on Tuesday morning.

The woman, Chidambaram (62) was living with her son, Pechimuthu and his two children at the quarters in Lotus garden in Kilpauk for the last nine years. Pechimuthu is a traffic police constable attached to Nungambakkam police station.

On Tuesday morning, Pechimuthu went to work and the students were at school when the incident happened. Chidambaram was sleeping when a portion of the concrete roof caved in and fell on her legs.

Hearing her screams, neighbours rushed to her aid and moved her to the Kilpauk Medical College Hospital (KMCH) for treatment.

Police said that Kilpauk police housing quarters was constructed five decades ago and has 14 blocks and has 12 houses in each block.

In March this year, Six engineers were placed under suspension after a similar incident in one of the flats in Cochin house police quarters in Thousand Lights.