4 dead, 6 hurt in Raigad; 150 Virar locals rescued

NAVI MUMBAI: Four people died and six were injured in accidents caused by Cyclone Tauktae in Raigad on Monday. Around 5,253 houses were damaged. As a precautionary measure, the district administration had evacuated around 8,383 people staying in over 2,900 kuchha houses on Sunday.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) had issued a ‘red alert’ for the district. Alibag, Panvel, Pen among others received heavy rain on Monday.

According to IMD forecast, there will be light and moderate rainfall in most places of the district on Tuesday, while a handful of areas will see very heavy and extremely heavy rainfall.

“An 80-year-old man from Pen, Rama Katkari, died after a branch of a tree fell on him in the afternoon. His wife also suffered injuries. Three others who died in similar accidents are Narayn Sable, 45; Sunandabai Gharat, 55; and Neeta Bhalchandra Naik, 50. While Sable died at Dhatav MIDC, Gharat and Naik died at Uran,” said an official.

Raigad district collector Nidhi Chaudhary said, “A total of 5,244 houses were damaged partially and nine houses were damaged fully due to heavy rain and wind. However, the residents did not suffer as we had evacuated them beforehand.”

“The wind had, however, no impact on the oxygen-producing units in the district. There was no disruption in power supply at Linde Taloja, INOX Mangao and JSW Dolvi,” she said. These three plants supply around 650 MT of oxygen daily for medical use in the state.

Meanwhile, around 150 members of 35 families in Arnala were rescued by the local administration and shifted to St Peter’s School, Arnala in Virar on Monday due to the cyclone, said Vasai tehsildar Ujwala Bhagat.

A trawler from Pali village in Bhayander with six khalasis was stuck in the Arabian Sea since Saturday, said fishermen leader Bernard D’mello,

An overhead galvanised iron sheet located at a mall opposite Virar station landed on the overhead wire between platforms 2 and 3 around 4pm owing to the gusty winds. Western Railway (WR) staffers removed the sheet by 4.30pm, Sumit Thakur, chief public relations officer, WR.

(Inputs from Ram Parmar)