Eight persons were killed after a Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) plunged nearly 1,500 feet into a deep gorge in Maharashtra’s Raigad district, police said on Monday. The accident took place in the Ambenali Ghat section on the Poladpur-Mahabaleshwar road, around 180 km from Mumbai, between 5 am and 6 am on Sunday.
The mangled vehicle was located in the gorge on Monday morning after relatives alerted police when the group failed to reach their destination.
According to officials, the victims, aged between 19 and 35 years, had left Harne in Dapoli around 2 am on Sunday and were travelling towards Satara.
Police said the relatives launched a search after losing contact with them and later approached authorities. During the investigation, the victims’ last mobile location was traced near Poladpur through tower data.
While searching the Ambenali Ghat stretch, police spotted the SUV deep inside the gorge on Monday morning.
Officials suspect the driver lost control of the vehicle in the hilly ghat section, causing it to veer off the road and plunge into the gorge.
Also read: Three of family killed in mishap on NH-12, Nadia
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis expressed grief over the deaths and said rescue operations were being conducted on a war footing.
“This is an extremely tragic incident. I pay heartfelt tributes to the deceased and share the grief of their families,” Fadnavis said in a statement.
He said the district administration had immediately launched rescue and relief operations and formed five teams, each comprising seven members, to retrieve the bodies from the gorge.
The Chief Minister said the operation was being carried out with assistance from the National Disaster Response Force and voluntary rescue groups, in coordination with the Raigad and Satara police.
Officials said one of the deceased belonged to Ratnagiri district, while the remaining seven were residents of Satara district.
The victims were identified as Ritesh Lokhande (22), Suhas Lokhande (20), Utkarsh Shingte (21), Nikhil Shingte (25), Mahesh Pawar (25), Aditya Salunkhe (21), Rajesh Katkar (35), all from Satara, and Ansh Chavan (19) from Ratnagiri district.
Police said further investigation into the accident was underway.
Follow us
