Raigad Landslide: 16 Dead, Many Trapped; NDRF Calls Off Rescue Op, to Resume on Friday | Updates

Raigad Landslide: At least 16 people were killed as 50 families got trapped under rubble after a landslide in Khalapur’s Irsalvadi village on the intervening night of Wednesday and Thursday amid incessant rainfall in Maharashtra.

The search and rescue operation has been halted due to continuous and heavy rainfall and the threat of further landslide in the area, the NDRF said in a statement. The rescue operations will resume at 5:00 am on Friday.

“Due to continuous heavy rain and the threat of landslides as well as the dark, the NDRF has called off its operation for the day,” an NDRF official was quoted by PTI as saying.

As many as 16 bodies have been recovered so far and 21 people rescued. A police official said one rescuer on his way to the landslide died of cardiac arrest.

Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde visited the spot and took stock of the situation.

According to a PTI report, Mumbai’s Civic Body sent equipment for rescue and relief operations to the site of the landslide in Irshalwadi. Acting on the directive of CM Shinde, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) sent three Bobcat-make machines from its solid waste management department sites at Mahim, Juhu and Mulund, an official said.

Officials told News18 that some people have been rescued but many are still trapped. State ministers Dada Bhuse and Uday Samant are at the spot, while NDRF is executing the relief work.

Officials said that many people are still trapped amid the heavy rainfall, making it difficult to carry on the rescue operation at speed. Raigad district collector Yogesh Mhase said, “Reaching the location requires a two-hour climb, which poses a significant challenge for us.”

As many as 75 people have been rescued so far, but many are still feared trapped, an official said. The village has around 50 houses, of which 17 were buried under the debris.

The incident, which took place between 11:30 pm and 12 am, is said to have hit hard the people settled on the side of the Morbe Dam in Raigad district.

According to information by Uday Samant, nearly 46-50 houses are located in Irsalvadi, of which 25 people have been evacuated safely amid the continuous downpour. He said that Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde is in constantly monitoring the situation.

Divisional Commissioner Mahendra Kalyankar said that he held a video conference with all officers around midnight and also received a call from CM Shinde.

Here Are Latest Maharashtra Rain Updates:

• Maharashtra deputy chief miniser Devendra Fadnavis said that heavy rain and darkness initially hampered the relief effort, but it is now picking up speed. “According to preliminary information, around 75 people have been evacuated and five people have died so far. The state government will provide all possible help to the kin of the deceased and the entire cost of treatment of the injured will be borne by the government,” Fadnavis added.

• Newly-inducted second deputy CM, Ajit Pawar, also took stock of the situation.

• Union home minister Amit Shah tweeted that he spoke to CM Shinde and was informed that four NDRF teams are at the landslide site and are carrying out rescue operations along with the local administration. “Our priority is to evacuate people from there and give immediate treatment to the injured,” he said.

• A fire officer from the Navi Mumbai civic body died due to a heart attack while he was on his way to join the rescue operations at the landslide site. While climbing the steep path, assistant station officer Shivram Dhumne (52), from Belapur fire station in Navi Mumbai, collapsed after suffering a heart attack and died.

• Four teams of NDRF, each consisting of 25 members, are at the landslide site along with four ambulances. While four ambulances are at stand by at the Rural Health Unit in Chauk with the Taluka Health Officer and four doctors.

• Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi party’s vice chief in Khalapur, Rohit Chandrakant Pawar, was one of the first ones to reach the spot post-midnight. “We have rescued three people and are bringing them down to the foothills,” said late at night.

• The India Meteorological Department (IMD) had issued a ‘red’ alert for Raigad and Palghar districts, predicting the possibility of heavy to extremely heavy rainfall in several parts on Wednesday. The weather department issued an ‘orange’ alert for Thane, Ratnagiri and Pune.

• The Raigad administration has announced a holiday for all schools and colleges as the district will remain on ‘orange’ alert till July 21. One NDRF team each was deployed in Palghar and Raigarh (Mahad) on Wednesday.

• The incessant rain did not even spare the police station as the Rasayani police station was filled with knee-deep water, forcing cops to shift important documents to a safer location.

• River Savitri in Raigad district was flooded after three days of continuous rainfall. The river crossed the danger level and was at 6.50 meters at 7 am on Wednesday, flooding low-lying areas of Mahad.

• Patalganga River has also crossed the danger mark due to heavy rains in the Khalapur area near Karjat. The river flowed at 21.52 meters in Raigad’s Lohap Mouje village, creating a flood-like situation in the Apta area.