Districts asked to brace for Thursday’s heavy downpour

Three people were reported missing after accidental drowning, one of them a four-month-old infant near Kalyan. Another person was found dead in Gadchiroli on Wednesday after he was reported missing due to accidental drowning on Tuesday.

Mumbai On Wednesday, parts of Konkan, Pune district and Vidarbha region reported heavy rainfall, which claimed one human life taking the death toll to 43 since the onset of the monsoon last month. Three persons were reported missing after accidental drowning in parts of Konkan and Vidarbha, while many villages in Palghar, Raigad and Pune districts were flooded.

All the six districts of Konkan division as well as Pune and Satara in Western Maharashtra, and Buldhana, Washim and Akola in Vidarbha recorded heavy rainfall. (Shankar Narayan/HT PHOTO)

All the six districts of Konkan division as well as Pune and Satara in Western Maharashtra, and Buldhana, Washim and Akola in Vidarbha recorded heavy rainfall. Three people were reported missing after accidental drowning, one of them a four-month-old infant near Kalyan. Another person was found dead in Gadchiroli on Wednesday after he was reported missing due to accidental drowning on Tuesday.

Water level of many rivers -- Kundalika, Vashishti, Jagbudi in Ratnagiri, Amba Savitri, Kundalika , Patalganga in Raigad -- crossed the danger level. The average rainfall reported was over 110 mm, the highest was 163mm in Raigad. Sindhudurg reported 118 mm rainfall, while most of 11 districts in Vidarbha reported around 45 to 50 mm rainfall on Wednesday. The district administration has shifted many families living in vulnerable areas in Mahad, Chiplun and parts of Pune, as well those in Halewara, Etapalli and Rajoli villages in Gadchiroli, to safe spaces. Administrations in these districts have been asked to take steps to avoid fatalities due to rain.

Deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis also spoke to divisional commissioners to stay on alert, and said “steps should be taken to avert crop losses”. Deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar spoke to Raigad collector Yogesh Mhase and asked him to evacuate families from vulnerable areas. “He asked the collector to be prepared to face any calamity in the wake of the forecast of heavy rainfall for the next two days, and also the rising water level of the main rivers in the district,” said a statement issued by his office.