Over 1,100 Stranded in Roha and Kolad Amid Flooding on Mumbai-Goa Highway
A group of 125 trekkers from Pune and around 1,000 tourists were stranded in the towns of Roha and Kolad in Raigad district following severe flooding and road closures that began on Saturday evening and lasted through Sunday night. The extreme weather conditions also triggered an emergency joint rescue operation on Sunday night, which successfully evacuated 36 inmates from a flooded beggars home situated along the Kundalika riverside in Kolad.
The group of 125 stranded trekkers comprised various professionals from Pune, including techies, advocates, and professors. The group had successfully completed the Andharban trek on the Tamhini Ghat stretch and scaled down to the Vira dam area, located in the Mangaon taluka of Raigad. However, their return journey was completely blocked.
Initially, the trekkers planned to return to Mulshi, but they were unable to do so owing to the complete closure of the Tamhini Ghat road. The group then attempted to alter their route to return to Pune via Pali and the Expressway. This second attempt had to be aborted as well, due to the heavily flooded conditions on the Mumbai-Goa highway.
The flooding on the Mumbai-Goa highway also caused major disruptions for other travellers, leaving more than 1,000 tourists stranded in Kolad, which is located in the same taluka.
With no way to return home on Sunday, the trekkers reached out to Pune corporator Baba Dhumal for assistance. Corporator Dhumal immediately contacted Member of Parliament (MP) Sunil Tatkare to coordinate a relief effort.
MP Tatkare responded rapidly to the situation. Within a few minutes, arrangements were made to house the group. The 125 trekkers were relocated and given safe accommodation at the Kalidas banquet hall.
Advocate Viraj Gopalghare, one of the trekkers in the stranded group, expressed gratitude for the quick response. Gopalghare confirmed that all members of the group are safe and are expected to return to Pune on Tuesday.
In addition to assisting the trekkers, emergency services had to respond to rising waters along the Kundalika river. Three teams participated in a joint rescue operation on Sunday night to evacuate 36 inmates of a Kolad-based beggars home, which is located on the riverside along the highway.
