Raigad bus accident – All 30 bodies recovered, rescue op called off

Poladpur – The rescue operation is completed to recover the bodies in Ambenali Ghat in Raigad district. There 31 persons onboard the bus and only one survived. All 30 bodies have been recovered by rescue team comprising personnel from the NDRF and local trekkers groups.

The bus with staffs of Dr. Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth (Konkan Agricultural University), Dapoli, Raigad district, was traveling from Poladpur (Raigad) to Mahableshwar in Satara district, when it fell down near Dabhil Tok.

The bus had left the university around 6.30 am on Saturday and the accident took place around 10.30 am when the bus fell down the mountain road. The one person found alive is identified as Prakash Rajaram Sawant Desai.

He told media persons, “During this trip, we were also going to visit the Wheat Research Centre under Mahatma Phule Agricultural University, Rahuri. We had hired the bus and left the university in Dapoli at 6.30 am. Around 10.30 am, we were crossing the Ambenali Ghat. There were heaps of debris kept on roadside and the bus driver lost balance after one of the tyres went over one of the heaps and the bus fell into the gorge. I was thrown out and landed on a tree, I caught hold of a branch and survived. I could see the bus as a small object in the gorge. I somehow climbed up. But there was no phone network. I walked for sometime and then informed police and university officials.”