Four Kids, Woman Drown in Forest Waterfall behind Lonavala's Bhushi Dam in Maharashtra

A woman and four children 'slipped' on mossy stones and were swept away in a waterfall at the backwaters of the Bhushi Dam at Pune's Lonavala on Sunday afternoon. The unfortunate incident occurred at a forest waterfall in which five members of the same family who had gone on a picnic during the rains were swept away.

Pune (Maharashtra) : A forty-year-old woman and a 13-year-old girl drowned to death in a waterfall close to the backwater of Bhushi Dam in Pune's Lonavala area on Sunday, while three children in the 4-6 age group are missing, a police official said.

The incident happened at 1:30 pm, after which search and rescue teams rushed to the spot, Pune Rural Superintendent of Police Pankaj Deshmukh said.
"We have recovered the bodies of a 40-year-old woman and a 13-year-old girl. Two 6-year-old girls and a 4-year-old boy are missing in the incident. It seems they are part of a family and slipped into a waterfall some two kilometres away from Bhushi Dam and drowned at the reservoir downstream," the SP told PTI.

Lonavala Police Station in-charge Mayur Agnave told IANS that the tragedy occurred in the afternoon when the victims and some others had gone to enjoy the waterfall, flowing in the hilly forests near the Bhushi Dam. As per information, all the victims are reported to be from Sayyed Nagar in Pune. Locals said that they may have slipped on the mossy stones at the base of the falls, got carried away in the force of the water and met a watery end, though exact details are awaited. Rescue teams of locals and police, armed with ropes and trekking gear, have rushed to the tragedy site to remove the victims, Agnave added.

The picnickers could not predict the force of the waterfall and were eventually swept away in the water. The Ansari family from Pune was stated to have met with this tragedy.