Non-stop rainfall has caused catastrophic floods in several parts of Maharashtra over the last 24 hours. Over three districts of the states are facing torrents and two are experiencing the flood-like situation.
Reportedly, it is the heaviest spell of rain in Maharastra in July in the last 40 years. Following the destruction, the Navy has been called in to assist with rescue and evacuation efforts.
Apart from the Navy, several National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams have been deployed for the rescue efforts in the Konkan area. The flooded districts are Ratnagiri, Raigad, Kolhapur; Sangli and Amravati are experiencing flood-like conditions.
According to sources, floodwaters have submerged more than half of the coastal town of Chiplun in Ratnagiri, which is around 250 kilometres from Mumbai and has a population of over 70,000 people.
A spine-chilling video from Chiplun has also gone viral which shows a group of people using what seems to be a rope to pull a woman from a flooded area. As she is being pulled up, the woman clings to the rope, but just as she approaches the building's terrace, the rescuers lose their grip, and she falls into the water.
Several persons have gone missing as a result of landslides in Raigad, which also resulted in closed roads.
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Since the last few days, Mumbai, Thane, Palghar, and other districts in the Konkan area have been experiencing severe rainfall.
A building collapsed in Mumbai's Govandi neighbourhood this morning, killing seven people and injuring three others. Due to heavy floods in the area, the Mumbai-Goa Highway has been blocked.
The red and orange alerts have been issued by the Met Department for several regions in Maharashtra that are expected to receive heavy rainfall in the next few days.
On Thursday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray chaired an emergency meeting to assess the situation, instructing disaster management units and other concerned authorities to be alert and begin rescue operations immediately.