4 boys feared drowned at Mumbai's Juhu Koliwada beach during high tide

Ignoring warnings of rough sea because of Cyclone Biparjoy, a total of eight boys ventured to the deep end of the jetty and sat on the ledge there.

Four teenaged boys were feared drowned in the sea at Juhu Koliwada beach on Monday evening after they ventured to the deep end of the jetty and were washed away during high tide.

Search and rescue operations on for four children who drowned at Juhu Koliwada beach, in Mumbai on Monday. (Anshuman Poyrekar/HT)

Ignoring warnings of rough sea because of Cyclone Biparjoy and high tide, a total of eight boys ventured to the deep end of the jetty and sat on the ledge there. According to the Mumbai Police, one boy was rescued by the local fisherman, while three others ran away. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporaton (BMC) suspended search and rescue operation due to bad weather and darkness at 11pm.

The four drowned boys have been identified as Dharamsh Bhujiya, 15, Manish Bhogania, 15, Shubham Bhogania, 16, Jai Tajpariya, 16.

The rescued boy is Dipesh Karan, 16, and the three who managed to run away from the spot are Dharam Nitesh, 16, Kaushal Tajpariya, 15 and Ankit Bhujia, 16. They are all residents of Dutt Mandir road, Vakola.

Mumbai Fire Brigade launched a search and rescue operation around 5:30pm and said lifeguards with jet skis and life jackets were deployed. Officials of the Mumbai Fire Brigade said that the high tide made the operation difficult.

A Navy chopper too was pressed into operation at 8.20 pm.

Disaster management said, search operation was carried out with night search light, rope manilla etc but the missing boys were not found. However, due to darkness and bad weather, the BMC suspended the search operation at 11 pm.

At Juhu Koliwada, fishermen said drowning is a frequent occurrence in this part of the beach. They said that easy access to the jetty, which goes a few hundred meters into the sea, and lack of security often leads youngsters to venture to the deep end of the jetty, causing accidents.

A distressed relative of Dharmesh Faujiya said, “We didn’t know that the kids were here. We have lost our young boy. I hope the authorities bring him back alive. The sea has taken him.”

As Juhu Beach gets crowded with visitors, most of the lifeguards are stationed there, and this part of the beach rarely has any. “While the locals understand the dangers of the rough sea, youngsters and tourists do not and venture into the sea. The sea gets so rough that it is difficult even for us to rescue or take the boats inside,” said a fisherman.

“This part of the beach has a huge opening; youngsters keep walking on the jetty and go deep. We keep discouraging them, but the crowd is so much that it gets difficult,” said a policeman.

A distressed relative of Dharmesh Faujiya said, “We didn’t know that the kids were here. We have lost our young boy. I hope the authorities bring him back alive. The sea has taken him.”

Due to the rough sea in the evening and following the incident, entry to the Main Juhu Beach was shut by the police and heavy security was deployed.

Cyclone Biparjoy caused inclement weather across the west coast as it modified into an ‘extremely severe cyclonic storm’ on Monday. It is expected to make landfall near Jakhau in Gujarat on June 15 .