22 feared dead in M'rashtra bridge collapse

Twenty-two people are feared dead after two state transport buses were swept away in the Savitri river when a British-era bridge on the Mumbai-Goa Highway in the Raigad district of Maharashtra collapsed late on Tuesday.

There are also reports that around three cars and SUVs have fallen into the river, but there was no confirmation from the Raigad district administration.

However, Vasant Kumar, who works in a transport company, told the authorities that he saw three cars falling into the river. 

The incident occurred around 11.30 pm and a massive search and rescue operation was launched in the early hours of Wednesday. Search teams also used magnets in the operations.

More than 24 hours after the incident, there is still no clue about the vehicles or the people travelling in them. Intermittent rain and winds have severly hampered the search operations. The search operations, which were later called off, will resume early on Thursday.

The over 120 metre bridge was built around 1928 and connects Mahad town to Poladpur in coastal Maharashtra, around 180 km south of Mumbai. The bridge is used by vehicles plying from Goa to Mumbai, while a parallel bridge built in 2001 is used by vehicles plying from Mumbai to Goa.

While one Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation bus was en route to Mumbai from Raigad, the other bus was moving from Rajapur to Borivli. Among the missing vehicles is a Tavera with a family of seven who were travelling from Guhagar to Mumbai.  The Savitri river originates in Mahabaleshwar, Satara district, which has received over 800 mm rainfall since Sunday. The river drains into the Arabian Sea, nearly 18 km away from the bridge.

“It is a very sad incident. We are making all efforts to look for survivors,” said Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis after conducting an aerial survey. Fadnavis ordered a probe and said a “competent officer” would be appointed soon. During the search operation, two bodies were recovered but authorities confirmed that it was not related to the incident