Mumbai: Torrent of mud & debris flattens homes on hills

MUMBAI: Nineteen people died and five were seriously injured in Bharat Nagar slum at Mahul after a landslide on a hill abutting the BARC complex and a subsequent flash flood around 12.30 am on Sunday. Even 20 hours later, rescuers were trying to pull out four people feared still trapped in the rubble. Three families lost four members each. The incident has again brought to the fore the issue of illegal constructions along retaining walls of establishments in the city.

The deceased included 11 women and eight men. Five were minors, including two in their teens, a two-year-old, a four-year-old, and a ten-year-old. Locals said that amidst heavy rain, water and muck gushed into the homes of nearly 200 families. The force swept way portions of the retaining wall at three locations, and the hillside portions of nearly 50 brick-and-mortar hutments collapsed under the debris. “It was as if all hell had broken loose. People had just gone to bed after dinner. Many must have died in their sleep,” said an eyewitness.
Most of the hutment dwellers in the area are daily wagers, plumbers, carpenters, domestic maids and people working odd jobs.
Reacting to allegations that the fire brigade and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) reached the spot late, senior fire brigade officials said they got the first call at 1.09 am and at 2.15 am the first fire tender had started rescue operations.
“After a higher level alert call at 4.38 am, fire brigade and NDRF operations started in full swing,” an official said. NDRF officials denied rumours of deaths due to electrocution at the site.
Chembur and surrounding areas got extremely heavy rainfall, 241 mm, between 11 am on Saturday and 7 am on Sunday. Environment minister Aaditya Thackeray termed it a “mini cloudburst”.
Questions are being raised as to how the hillside hutments, which came up in 1999, were allowed to abut a wall. BMC norms specify a minimum distance between retaining walls and dwellings. “Why was this norm not followed?” asked BJP leader Kirit Somaiya, who visited the spot. “The place is so risky that another incident can happen anytime in case of heavy rains if existing huts are not shifted.”
Chief minister Uddhav Thackeray has announced ex-gratia payment of Rs 5 lakh to the next of kin of each deceased person and free medical treatment for the injured. Thackeray took stock of rescue and relief operations in the presence of municipal commissioner I S Chahal and asked for strong coordination between NDRF, fire brigade and police. He said he wanted the administration to be alert amid heavy rain forecasts.
The CM has asked municipal authorities to ensure rainwater drainage from low-lying areas, to keep roads free from water-logging and ensure the restoration of local train services at the earliest. He has also said that medical facilities at jumbo Covid centres should not get affected due to rain.
At Mahul, those who escaped recounted their ordeal. Rukhsana Khan, whose home was damaged in the incident, said her six-year-old son was playing close to the door but since the door was closed, the debris did not hit him. Laxmi Jogdandkar, who lives on the first floor, said he and his family were saved from strong rainwater currents because they were not at ground-floor level. (With inputs from Sujit Mahamulkar)