Bid to catch catch crabs goes wrong, 5 boys lose way on hill, rescued after 7 hours

Cops say the rescue operation was a challenging one as the team had to face the precarious hilly region in darkness and amid rains

Thane: Five boys, who went to catch crabs on a hill in Maharashtra’s Thane city but lost their way, were rescued in a joint overnight operation by multiple agencies, an official said on Saturday.

Of the five boys, most of whom are aged around 12, three are siblings, he said, adding that the rescue operation lasted seven hours.

---

“Five boys from Dargah Galli in Azad Nagar area went up to the Khadi Machine area on Mumbra hill around 5 pm in order to catch crabs. But they lost their way and raised an alarm. Some persons who were passing by at that time, heard them shouting for help, but could not find them. They later alerted the fire brigade,” said Yasin Tadvi, chief of the regional disaster management cell (RDMC) of the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC).

After being informed, a multi-agency search operation involving the personnel of the RDMC, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), fire brigade and others was launched at night, he said.

“The rescue operation was a challenging one as the team members had to face the precarious hilly region in darkness and amid rains. The boys were finally rescued around 3 am and handed over to their parents,” Tadvi said.