New Delhi, July 13 - Five people were injured Monday when three huge cranes and a launching girder toppled at the same Delhi Metro site where six people died a day earlier when a part of the elevated rail track under construction came down in a heap of concrete and steel.

The latest tragedy occurred when hundreds of Delhi Metro workers and engineers were gathered at the site of the earlier accident overseeing the continuing efforts to remove tonnes of debris.

Suddenly, one after another, three cranes collapsed amid a deafening roar, apparently unable to bear the weight of the launching girder, triggering a panic run in Zamrudpur area in south Delhi.

A large number of policemen who had been deployed since Sunday also bolted following the accident.

One of the cranes, a 16-wheeled monster, fell on a row of shops.

It took a while for calm to be restored. The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), also in south Delhi, said five people had been injured.

'Five people have been admitted and more injured are on their way,' AIIMS Trauma Centre spokesperson Nirmal Thakur told IANS.

A witness explained what happened Monday.

'There was a deafening noise and there was dust all over. I ran from there with my child and wife,' said Kishore Kumar, who runs a tea shop just 50 meters away.