Heavy Rain Claims Lives Across State Shuts Hill Routes

Mumbai: Relentless monsoon rain battered large parts of Maharashtra on Sunday, turning rivers, waterfalls and hill routes into danger zones. Four tourists drowned in separate incidents in Raigad, while torrential showers triggered landslides, flooded highways, shut popular tourist destinations and claimed lives in other parts of the state.

The four deaths in Raigad were reported in three separate incidents. Two tourists on a monsoon picnic drowned at one location, while two others died in separate mishaps, said resident deputy collector Sandesh Shirke.

“People should avoid visiting monsoon tourist destinations until weather conditions improve,” said Raigad resident deputy collector Sandesh Shirke.

Rain-related fatalities were also reported from Palghar, Satara and Beed. A child died after being trapped in floodwaters in Palghar, a motorist was crushed by a boulder during a landslide on the Satara-Phaltan road, and a 26-year-old farmer died after suffering an electric shock from a live wire in his field in Beed.

The farmer, identified as Mauli Gonde, had gone to work on his farm as usual when he came into contact with the electrified wire and lost his life.

In Bhiwandi, a 17-year-old boy, Mohammad Gaus Ansari, went missing after being swept away in the Kamwari river while swimming with friends.

The relentless rain also brought transport to a crawl. Fresh landslides forced the closure of the Ambenali Ghat connecting Poladpur and Mahabaleshwar, while all roads leading to Matheran were shut after the hill station recorded over 400 mm of rainfall by Sunday morning.

Heavy showers inundated roads in Chiplun, while rivers including the Panchganga and Bhogawati in Kolhapur rose close to warning levels, prompting authorities to alert residents living along riverbanks.

In Dighi, three fishermen had a narrow escape after their boat capsized in rough sea conditions during high tide. Ferry operators spotted them in the water and rescued them.

With more rain forecast, the state has deployed 17 National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams and six State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams across the state. The IMD has issued a red alert for Raigad and orange alerts for Mumbai, Thane, Palghar, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg.

Surendra P Gangan is Senior Assistant Editor with political bureau of Hindustan Times’ Mumbai Edition. He covers state politics and Maharashtra government’s administrative stories. Reports on the developments in finances, agriculture, social sectors among others.Read More