Crowd in middle swept away in river: Survivor recalls Pune bridge fall

Following the death of four people in the Indrayani River bridge collapse incident, one of the survivors, who was injured, on Monday recalled that there was a huge crowd, which had gathered at one place on the bridge, leading to its collapse.

Speaking to ANI, the man recalled that the people standing in the middle of the bridge were swept away in the Indrayani River.

"There was a huge crowd on the bridge. The road was jammed due to vehicles coming from both sides. The crowd gathered at one place, and the bridge collapsed. People standing in the middle of the bridge were swept away. We fell on the stones and got injured," he said.

Maval Tahsildar Vikram Deshmukh said, "The injured are being treated in the hospital. We have not received any complaints of missing people. Four people have died in the incident." 

According to District Collector Jitendra Dudi, the tragic incident occurred at 3:15 pm on Sunday, and rescue teams were alerted by 3:30 pm.

Speaking to ANI, Dudi said, "A total of 51 people are injured and admitted to different hospitals, taking treatment, and four individuals have died. Three were identified as Chandrakant Salve, Rohit Mane, and Vihaan Mane, and one was male but unidentified."

He added, "A team of about 250 people immediately came here. The rescue operation started, and so far we have rescued about 38 people." Dudi confirmed that search operations were ongoing, as two people were still unaccounted for.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who reached Cyprus, spoke to CM Fadnavis to take stock of the ongoing rescue and relief operations.

The Chief Minister expressed deep sorrow over the incident and said he is in constant touch with senior officials, including the Divisional Commissioner, District Collector, Superintendent of Police, and Tehsildar.

"It was very sad to hear the news of the accident in which a bridge over the Indrayani river collapsed at Indori near Talegaon in Pune district. According to preliminary information, 2 people have died in this incident. I pay my heartfelt tributes to them. We share the grief of their families," Fadnavis said in a post on X.

He added, "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 for them. NDRF has been deployed at the spot. Relief work has been given immediate impetus...all the agencies have been ordered to be put on alert mode...they have been admitted to the hospital for treatment.