Heavy rains in Maharashtra’s Thane and Palghar; Surya river in spate as IMD predicts more showers

Heavy rains cause flooding in Palghar and Thane, leading to a 'red alert' and search operation halts.

Heavy rains lashed Maharashtra's Thane and neighbouring Palghar districts overnight and authorities issued a 'red alert' for Palghar on Thursday morning, predicting very heavy showers, officials said.

Due to flooding of the Surya river in Palghar, a bridge in Manor was submerged and the movement between Wada and Manor remained affected, district disaster management cell chief Vivekanand Kadam told PTI.

The high tide further aggravated the situation, he said.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a 'red alert' for Palghar at 10 a.m., forecasting very heavy showers over the next three hours, Mr. Kadam said.

Due to the heavy rains, the search operations for an excavator and its operator undertaken by various agencies at Sasun Navghar in Palghar have been stopped for now, he said.

The excavator and its operator were buried in a tunnel of an upcoming water project on May 29 after the soil there caved-in.

The neighbouring Thane city and district also experienced heavy downpour overnight, another official said.