70 picnickers stuck at Pali waterfall rescued after sudden water level rise

VALPOI: Around 70 picnickers, who had gone to the Pali waterfall in Thane-Sattari on Sunday, were left stranded after heavy rainfall led to sudden rise in water levels.
Teams of police, emergency services and forest department were roped in to rescue those stranded. They were brought to safety in two batches.
Due to the sudden rise in the water level at the waterfall, the picnickers were unable to come out of the water.
The incident is a grim reminder of the Lonavala incident where 7 people were swept away by a raging waterfall.
‘Those stuck in water pulled out using rope’
The tourists and local picnickers were pulled out from the water with the help of rope and brought to land through alternative routes.
Thane sarpanch Nilesh Parwar said that all the 70 people were rescued in a joint operation of three departments.
“I thank all the three departments for their timely intervention and helping out the picnickers who were scared and confused due to sudden rise of water,” he said.
The picnickers were rescued in two groups of 40 and later 30, SP (North Goa) Akshat Kaushal said.
Following heavy rainfall, the forest department had banned entry to all waterfalls, but low-intensity ones were later opened to visitors due to pressure from those making a livelihood by selling eatables to visitors at the waterfalls. But even safe waterfalls can turn risky during very heavy rainfall.
Thousands of picnickers from all over Goa and neighbouring states visit Sattari for weekend picnics during the monsoon, as seasonal falls come alive.
On Sunday, at Keri Goteli, also in Sattari, water was seen flowing over the bridge thereby blocking the road for vehicular traffic for several hours.
Road was also blocked for vehicular traffic at Velus Sattari as the road was submerged under water. Water also entered the plantations adjacent to the river at Velus.
In Honda, the roof of a civil supplies department godown was blown off resulting in loss of lakhs of rupees as bags of wheat, rice and other commodities stored inside the godown were completely destroyed by the rain.
Several houses in the taluka were also damaged and many trees were uprooted due to heavy rain accompanied by gusty winds.
The water level in the Mhadei has also increased due to the incessant rain.