Pune bridge collapse: Two drown, rescue operations underway

The bridge over the Indrayani River at Kundamala in Pune's Maval taluka suddenly collapsed, sending the people plunging into the water and being swept away by the overflowing river.

Pune: At least two people were killed, 32 others injured, while six were rescued as several people, mostly tourists, fell into a foaming river when the bridge they were crossing collapsed in Maharashtra’s Pune district on Sunday.

The bridge over the Indrayani River at Kundamala in Pune’s Maval taluka suddenly collapsed, sending the people plunging into the water and being swept away by the overflowing river.

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Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that preliminary reports indicate two persons have died as he expressed grief over the incident.

“I was deeply saddened to hear the news of the tragedy that occurred when a bridge over the Indrayani River collapsed in Indori, near Talegaon in Pune district. According to preliminary information, 2 people have died in this incident. I pay my heartfelt tribute to them. We share the grief of their families. I am in constant touch with the Divisional Commissioner, District Collector, Superintendent of Police and the concerned Tehsildar regarding this incident. As some people have been swept away, a search is being carried out on a war footing. NDRF has been deployed at the spot. The relief work has been immediately accelerated. 6 people have been rescued so far. All the agencies have been ordered to be on alert mode. 32 people were injured, 6 of them are critical. They have been admitted to the hospital for treatment. The Divisional Commissioner himself has left for the scene,” CM Fadnavis said in a post in X in Marathi.

Visuals from the scene show sections of the bridge, mostly directly over the waters, have broken down and fallen into the river while rescue personnel from various agencies worked to locate and rescue the victims.

A crane has been pressed into service as efforts continue to remove parts of the collapsed structure amid rescue operations.

“…It (the bridge) collapsed while people were crossing it. Around 20–25 people were on the bridge at that time. So far, two bodies have been recovered, and the rescue operation is still underway. The families of the victims and a regular crowd have gathered at the site…” a rescue worker told IANS.

Raised water levels, due to heavy rains in the region, exacerbated the disaster. Maval has been recording heavy rains in the previous two days, causing the Indrayani River to be in spate.

Police, fire brigade, and NDRF teams rushed to the site and launched a rescue operation

Kundmala is a popular tourist destination that sees high footfall during monsoons. The footfall was higher as it was a Sunday, and there were reports that the old bridge was overcrowded when the accident occurred.