An old bridge on the Mumbai-Goa highway near Mahad collapsed in the
wee hours of Wednesday morning in the Raigad district in the Konkan
region due to heavy rains.
About eighty per cent of the bridge built over the Savitri River gave
away at about 2 am. The number of casualties has still not been
ascertained and rescue operations are underway. However, among the
vehicles that have likely been swept away are two state buses carrying
18 passengers, two bus drivers and two conductors.
One of the buses was
traveling from Jaigarh to Mumbai and the other was traveling from
Rajapur to Borivali.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis tweeted at 2.30 am saying he had
spoken to the Raigad Superintendent of Police and Collector regarding
the mishap on the Mumbai-Goa Highway.
“Administration has rushed to the spot for rescue and immediate
measures. There were two parallel bridges. One is a new bridge and one
was constructed during the British era. The old one collapsed.”
The chief minister also said the primary reason for the bridge collapse
seems to be the flooding of River Savitri due to heavy rains in the
catchment area of Mahabaleshwar. He also added that immediately after
the incident there was no confirmed assessment of casualties since the
area was very dark.
Teams of the National Disaster Response Force rushed to the spot for
rescue operations. The Coast Guard also launched a helicopter at 8.30 am
to search for people swept away from the bridge.
The new bridge was closed for operations immediately after the old
bridge collapsed to check its structural stability. One-way traffic had
resumed on the new bridge by 9 am on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi took cognisance of the incident on Wednesday morning and assured all cooperation in relief work.
News From:
http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-news-india/mumbai-goa-highway-bridge-collapses-2-buses-carrying-18-people-missing-2950787/
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