“Police, Navy divers and other rescue teams on July 1 resumed the search for two missing children who along with three other family members got swept away at a waterfall near the Bhushi Dam in Pune’s Lonavala area,” officials said.
After the tragic incident on June 30, the rescue teams had recovered the bodies of a 36-year-old woman and two minor girls. Search was on for the other two missing children — Adnan Sabhahat Ansari (4) and Mariya Aqil Ansari (9), according to police.
"The search operation for the two children resumed on Monday morning with the rescue teams of the Vanyajeev Rakshak Maval, Shiv Durg Trekkers Organisation and the Navy divers," an official from Lonavala police station said.
A heart-wrenching video of the incident showed a group of people, including those who lost their lives, being swept away by the gushing water caused by intense rainfall in the region.
A search team on Sunday recovered the bodies of Shahista Liaqat Ansari (36), Amima Adil Ansari (13) and Umera Adil Ansari (8) from the reservoir downstream.
According to the police, 16-17 members of a family from Sayyad Nagar in Pune's Hadapsar area had hired a private bus to visit the scenic spot near Lonavala for a picnic on the rain-soaked Sunday.
“Members of the Ansari family went to see the waterfall close to the Bhushi Dam but were caught unawares when the water flow rose due to intense rain in the area and were swept away,” a police official said on Sunday.
A relative said the family members travelled from Mumbai for a wedding a couple of days ago. “On Sunday, more than 15 members hired a bus to go to Lonavala for a picnic,” he said.
As the monsoon season begins, thousands of visitors flock the Bhushi and Pavana dam areas, often disregarding warnings from the police and local authorities to avoid unknown areas. A police officer estimated that more than 50,000 people visited Lonavala on June 30.
