2 collegians drown at Navi Mumbai waterfall; 1 drown in nullah

A picnic at a forbidden waterfall in Navi Mumbai proved fatal for at least two teenage girls from Navi Mumbai on Saturday, officials said. Four girls from a college in Nerul were washed away at the famous Pandavkada waterfall this noon, a Kharghar police station officer said, adding that bodies of two of them have been recovered while two others are missing.

The deceased are identified as Neha Jain and Aarti Nayak, aged around 19. Jain and Nayak had visited the waterfall to enjoy rains with their friends, the officer said.

The access to the waterfall is forbidden due to treacherous terrain. Police are now investigating how the four teenagers reached the waterfall.

Heavy rains have been lashing Raigad, Thane and Palghar districts neighbouring Mumbai since Friday. In another incident, a 30-year-old man died after he fell into a swollen nullah at DJ Compound in Sabegaon in Diva in Thane.

On Saturday, incidents of wall collapse were reported at three places Thane but no casualties were reported, a Regional Disaster Management Cell (RDMC) official said. In Palghar district, more than a dozen instances of house collapse due to heavy rains were reported.

Similar incidents were reported in Jawhar and Kelghar in the district. Officials said rivers and nullahs are overflowing in Thane and Palghar districts. Several villages have been cut off from the main towns due to flooding.

At least 25-30 houses were marooned in Khadicha Pada in Vasai in Palghar, they said, adding that the residents were safely evacuated. In Bhiwandi, low-lying areas are flooded, forcing the residents to take shelter at safer places..

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)