Commuters travelling from Thane to Navi Mumbai during peak hours on Friday were stuck in massive traffic jam on Thane-Belapur Highway at Kalwa . A Gulmohar tree fell on a tempo opposite Chhatrapati Shivaji Hospital in Kalwa, blocking the road. The authorities took more than an hour and half to remove the tree.
Santosh Kadam, chief of Regional Disaster Management Cell (RDMC), said, “The Gulmohar tree fell on a moving tempo. No one was injured but the entire lane was blocked, leading to traffic congestion. The fire brigade, police, traffic police and our team removed the tree.”
Till the tree was removed, motorists were stuck in the jam. The portion of the tree which fell on the tempo was cut, clearing the lane around 12 noon, one and half hours after the incident.
A traffic police officer said, “The tree fell on the highway and one lane was closed for traffic. This led to jam on the road going towards Navi Mumbai. This affected the traffic at Kalwa Naka. Vehicles coming from Mumbra towards Kharegaon and Manisha Nagar were stuck. Traffic was held up for almost two hours as the civic authority time to remove the tree.”
Commuters were inconvenienced. Santosh Patil, 40, a motorist, said he got late for work. “I was going towards Thane from Digha. I was stuck for 30 minutes in the jam from Kalwa hospital to the second Kalwa bridge. The road going towards Thane and Navi Mumabi was blocked. Only one road was open,” said Patil.
{{/usCountry}}Commuters were inconvenienced. Santosh Patil, 40, a motorist, said he got late for work. “I was going towards Thane from Digha. I was stuck for 30 minutes in the jam from Kalwa hospital to the second Kalwa bridge. The road going towards Thane and Navi Mumabi was blocked. Only one road was open,” said Patil.
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