On Monday, police, Navy divers and other rescue teams began searching for two missing children and three family members who were swept away by a waterfall near Bhushi dam in Lonavala, Pune. The Lonavala waterfall tragedy occurred on Sunday.
On Sunday, rescuers recovered the body of a 36-year-old woman and two young daughters. Police are still searching for Adnan Sabhahat Ansari (4) and Mariya Aqil Ansari (9), PTI reported.
“The search operation for the two boys was resumed on Monday morning with rescue teams from Vanyajeev Rakshak Maval, Shiv Durg Trekkers Organization and Navy divers,” an official from the police station told PTI. Lonavala.
Lonavala waterfall tragedy: Video of incident goes viral
A video of the Lonavala waterfall tragedy reportedly shows a group of people, including the victims, being swept away by powerful currents of water generated by heavy rains.
VIDEO | Images of five people who drowned in a waterfall near the backwater of Bhushi Dam in Lonavala area of Pune earlier today.
Authorities said the incident occurred at 12:30 pm when a family was having a picnic at the scenic spot. They said that the Shahista bodies… pic.twitter.com/qOmk0qQHPa
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) June 30, 2024
On Sunday, the bodies of Shahista Liaqat Ansari (36), Amima Adil Ansari (13) and Umera Adil Ansari (8) were discovered in the downstream reservoir.
According to police, 16-17 members of a family from Sayyad Nagar in Hadapsar area of Pune hired a private bus for a picnic in Lonavala. The water current triggered by heavy rains swept them away, a news agency reported.
According to a relative, the family had recently returned from a wedding in Mumbai. On Sunday, more than 15 people hired a bus to Lonavala for a picnic.
Lonavala waterfall tragedy: An estimated 50,000 people visited the hill station on Sunday
With the onset of monsoon season, thousands of visitors flock to the Bhushi and Pavana dam areas, often rejecting advice from police and local officials to avoid new sites. A police official estimated that about 50,000 people visited Lonavala on Sunday.
Another PTI report quoted senior police inspector Kishor Dhumal as saying that it is crucial to take preventive measures like increasing police presence, installing metal fences, marking danger zones with visible signs and deploying more lifeguards to avoid any unpleasant incidents.
“Anticipating the influx of tourists during monsoon, we have called meetings with police patils of over 20 villages around the dam. We have directed them to stop tourists from entering the water bodies. We have also directed camping sites and resorts to stop their guests from going near the dam water,” Dhumal told PTI.
Police Patils are village level personnel, appointed by the concerned Collector, who assist the police in maintaining law and order in rural areas.
Dhumal told PTI that drownings occur because victims fail to access deep water, adding, “The responsibility for safety measures lies with the irrigation department. We have suggested several measures, including installing metal fences around the shoreline, deploying more lifeguards and providing a patrol boat equipped with rescue equipment.”
