While he remembered the scenes from the old bridge of collapse across the Indrayani river near Talegaon in Pune on Sunday, which killed four and injured 51, eyewitnesses swapped Kollam said they were in “panic situation and escaped” when they saw some of the bridge, where there were more than 50 people.
“I almost fell into it”
“There were more than 150-200 people on the bridge, but there were more than 50 people in the place where the bridge collapsed. Five to six laps were there. There was a jam. My brother pulled two people out. We were in a panic situation because the other part of the bridge was broken. It ended up – so I was saved.
What did the people say?
The wounded said, “There was a huge crowd on the bridge. The road was stuck due to vehicles coming from both sides … The crowd gathered in one place and the bridge collapsed … People standing in the middle of the bridge were swept away … We fell on the stones and were injured …”
“When I was on the bridge, I felt it was moving, and at a time when I could tell my sister, a bridge fell. I suffered a fracture. Here we get good medical treatment,” said Sunil Kumar, another injured.
A crowded fabric, which held over 150-200 people, partially collapsed and sent dozens of thrown into the water. According to the district collector Jitendry Dudi there was an incident at 15:15 and the rescue teams were alerted until 15:30. Seven victims were moved to the ICU at the Atharva Hospital, where six were declared from danger, while one remained in a critical but stable condition.
Also read | NEWS PUNE: BRIDGE OVER INRAYANI RIVER will collapse; 2 people die, 15 swept
“A total of 51 people are injured and accepted to various hospitals, treatment and four individuals have died. Three were identified as Chandrakant Salve, Rohit Mane and Vihaan Mane, and one was a man but unidentified. The team of about 250 people came here. Dudi confirmed that search operations were going because two people were still not counted.
He added: “We have issued recommendations and warnings in all places that are dangerous for tourists, and that was one such place, but unfortunately the number of tourists has increased a lot … in the future we will create a team and explore the incident, and if the administration is found guilty, we will ensure that they take steps against them.”
Also read | Bridge collapse of PUNE: PM MODI DIALS CM FADNAVIS, Evaluating the situation
Maharashtra Minister of Relief and Rehabilitation, Makarand Patil and District Collector Jitendra Dudi visited the civil hospital and met the injured.
NCP-SCCP leader MLA Rohit Pawar and Shiv hay (UBT) Anand Dubey React
NCP-SCP MLA Rohit Pawwar called the tragedy “very unfortunate” and said, “The bridge was quite old and there used to be a discussion of its reconstruction, but unfortunately it could not be done.” He pointed out that many bridges in the Mahari, some of the colonial era, are in impaired state and urgently need repairs.
The leader of Shiv Sena (UBT) Anand Dubey killed the administration and asked, “Why did the authority not become barricades when the bridge was weak? Why was the security of tourists tightened …?
Dubey also claimed that the fund £8 crore was approved for the bridge but never used. “Looking at the bad conditions PUNE can’t even travel like tourists? … This matter is right in the case of murder,” he mentioned, looking for a nationwide audit of all old bridges, including the deployment of security staff at tourist places.
In the late night, a collapsed part of the bridge was cleaned from the river, which meant the end of the search and rescue effort. Meanwhile, the cause of the collapse is under investigation.
(Tagstotranslate) collapse bridge
