3 friends who went for a swim in Barvi Dam drowned after being trapped in vortex

Three men from Ambernath drowned in Barvi Dam while swimming to beat the heat, ignoring warnings. All three lost their lives while trying to save one another.

Thane: Three men from Ambernath drowned in Barvi Dam near Asnoli village on Wednesday afternoon after one of them was trapped in the vortex in the deep waters while swimming and the other two went to save him.

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Since May 1 was a state holiday to mark Labour Day, the three men, Hritikesh Murgu, 23, Suhas Kamble, 19, and Yuvraj Huli 18, residents of Ghadge Nagar and Javasai area of ​​Ambernath, planned an outing along with their friends near the riverside to beat the heat. Despite posters being put up by the local police, warning visitors against swimming in the strong current, all three ignored the signs and ventured into the river.

According to police officials, 19-year-old Suhas started drowning after being trapped in the vortex. Yuvraj and Hrithikesh, who were swimming in the shallow waters, heard his screams and went to save him but lost control due to strong currents and drowned. All three were the only children of their parents.

The riverside area, where several families and villagers had come to relax, raised an alarm about the incident and informed the police. A search operation, involving villagers and fire brigade officials, was launched and hours later, the three bodies were fished out of the water.

Hritikesh was working in a stock broking company while Suhas and Yuvraj were college students. A relative of Hrishikesh, Jayesh Patil said, “After seeing his two friends drown, Hrithikesh with the help of others made a human chain and went into the deep waters to save them. Despite knowing how to swim, he got trapped inside in the vortex and couldn’t come out.”

After the incident was reported to the Kulgaon rural police, they called the fire brigade to start the search operation. “The river belt is very risky and therefore we have deployed constables around the area but the visitors don’t pay attention to our warnings and venture into the waters,” said an official.

Govind Patil, senior police inspector from Kulgaon rural police, said, “Our officers were continuously on duty at the spot which is also the confluence of Barvi Dam water and Ulhasnagar river. Due to the confluence, the spot is prone to a 10 to 15-foot-deep vortex which can easily trap swimmers. We have put up several posters here warning the visitors not to venture into the river, however, few pay heed to it,” said Patil.

He added that now they are planning to close down this area permanently for the visitors in order to avoid such incidents. They have registered an accidental death report in the matter.