Pune bridge collapse: 2 dead, 15–20 feared swept away in Indrayani River in Talegaon
Pune: A decades-old bridge over the Indrayani River caved in on Sunday afternoon in Pune district’s Talegaon area, dragging an estimated 15 to 20 people into the river's swift current.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said 32 people have sustained injuries, of whom six are critical, NDTV reported.
Fadnavis has confirmed the death of two people in the incident.
According to the NDTV report, the incident occurred in popular tourist destination Kundamala that sees high footfall during monsoons.
The spot lies in the Talegaon area within Pune district’s Maval Taluka.
The structure, which had been shut to vehicular traffic due to its poor condition, gave way as heavy rainfall caused water levels to surge.
Despite the closure, several individuals had gathered on the bridge to watch the rising river when the collapse occurred.
Police and disaster relief workers, including the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), reached the spot, and rescue work has started. Six people have been rescued so far.
"As some people have been swept away, a search is being carried out on a war footing. NDRF has been deployed at the spot. The relief work has been immediately accelerated," Fadnavis wrote in a post in Marathi.
So far, 5–6 people have been pulled out of the river alive.
Initial accounts suggest that the bridge buckled under the force of the strong current. Rescue and search efforts have been launched on a war footing, with local police and district officials leading the operation.
Fifteen ambulances have been rushed to the scene to aid the ongoing efforts, an India Today report said.
The bridge collapse in Pune rural's Maval Taluka comes even as an orange alert remains in place for Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad, with heavy to very heavy rains expected in the ghat regions.
The area had received heavy rains in the last two days.
Residents had reportedly alerted the authorities about the structural safety of the bridge, which was renovated 4-5 years ago. NDTV reported that many tourists, visiting the spot, were unaware of the potential danger.
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