2 tourists dead, 3 missing after being swept away at Lonavala waterfall

A WOMAN and a 13-year-old girl tourist drowned, while three others are missing after being swept away at a waterfall close to the backwater of Bhushi Dam in Pune's Lonavala area on Sunday afternoon, Maharashtra police said.

According to the police, the incident happened around 1.30 pm, after which search and rescue teams of police and local volunteers rushed to the spot to locate the tourists, Pune Rural Superintendent of Police Pankaj Deshmukh said.

"We have recovered the bodies of a 40-year-old woman and a 13-year-old girl. Two 6-year-old girls and a 4-year-old boy are missing in the incident. It seems they are part of a family and slipped into a waterfall some 2 km away from Bhushi Dam and drowned at the reservoir downstream," news agency PTI quoted SP Deshmukh as saying.

The waterfall is located behind the Railway’s rest house near the dam.

According to the police, continuous rainfall in the Lonavala region since early morning has led to the overflow of the Bhushi Dam—a popular tourist hotspot—and increased the flow of waterfalls.

Lonavala police further said they have deployed several teams, including the local trekkers, who are well-versed in the terrain, to search for the missing children.

The identities of those who are feared drowned are yet to be confirmed, the police added.