Six Dead in Mankhurd and Highways Closed as Heavy Rain Batters Maharashtra
Torrential rainfall has triggered severe flooding, landslides, and a fatal building collapse across Maharashtra, prompting the State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC) to deploy 17 National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams. The severe weather has claimed six lives in Mankhurd, trapped residents in Patan, and shut down critical transit routes including the Pune-Mumbai Expressway and the Mumbai-Goa National Highway.
Extremely heavy showers have battered the region, with Lonavala recording the highest rainfall at 670 mm. In Mumbai, Santacruz recorded 151.2 mm of rain, while Colaba received 128 mm. Other areas including Tamhini, Ambona, Matheran, Karjat, and Panvel also experienced intense downpours. Consequently, authorities issued Red Alerts for landslide-prone areas including Matheran, Lonavala, Khopoli, and Lohagad.
The heavy rain has resulted in severe casualties and emergency situations. In Mankhurd, six people were killed and one was injured when a building collapsed onto a nearby slum settlement. Meanwhile, in Patan village, emergency personnel are conducting rescue operations where three to four people are feared trapped after a landslide buried a house.
In Maval taluka, rescue teams successfully intervened to save lives. An NDRF team rescued all 25 passengers who were stranded inside a bus trapped in deep floodwaters at Ghorawadi. The SEOC is currently coordinating these rescue efforts alongside district administrations, utilizing the GEO-DSS system for real-time risk assessments.
The weather has caused widespread disruption to the state's transport network. A landslide at Kashedi Ghat forced authorities to suspend all traffic on the Mumbai-Goa National Highway. Similarly, a landslide on the Missing Link stretch of the Pune-Mumbai Expressway led to its closure, while the old Khopoli highway was shut due to severe waterlogging.
Rail commuters also faced major disruptions as train services between Monkey Hill and Thakurwadi were suspended. This suspension has directly impacted the vital Pune-Mumbai railway line. Six SDRF teams remain on standby as emergency operations continue across the affected zones.
