Chennai: A 74-year-old man, his wife, and their granddaughter, were injured on Saturday night at Nochikuppam after a balcony from an old private building collapsed and fell on them.The incident occurred around 8.45pm while they were standing outside their home engaged in a conversation.Locals have filed a police complaint against Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL), alleging that the agency ignored repeated complaints about cracks developing in homes due to nearby tunnelling work. The injured identified as P Kuppan, 74, his wife K Rajamani, 68, and their 14-year-old granddaughter Aswitha were taken to a hospital. “They had a narrow escape. But this could have been fatal,” said K Kasinathan, Kuppan’s son, who filed the police complaint.“We have been raising concerns about structural damage in our area ever since metro work between Light House and Mylapore began.”Residents say underground work has caused vibration-like disturbances in the area. “We would hear loud, unsettling noises and feel tremors. The walls of our homes, especially older ones, began developing visible cracks,” said K Bharathi, another long-time resident. While CMRL officials inspected the area and measured cracks, residents say no long-term mitigation work was undertaken. Only three families were temporarily relocated, while the rest continued to stay in damaged homes, say residents.“We are not in a position to repair these structures ourselves. Most residents here are financially constrained. We’re forced to live under constant risk of injury or worse,” Bharathi added.CMRL said the accident area is is 500m from the light house metro station. “We wish to confirm that CMRL tunnel boring machine has already passed this area three months before. Based on our observations no abnormalities are found,” the statement read.While CMRL denied responsibility, people in the area pointed out that a similar protest broke out last year when cracks appeared in the walls of Dominic Savio Matriculation School, just 1km from the site of Saturday’s incident.Just a week ago, a 65-year-old man was injured after a wall collapsed in the Tamil Nadu Urban Habitat Development Board (TNUHDB) tenements in Foreshore Estate. In 2023, a 22-year-old man died after a sunshade collapsed in nearby Srinivasapuram — both sites close to Nochikuppam.