Tree collapse kills one more, toll 4 in 24 hrs; 65-yr-old electrocuted in Palghar
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Thane: A day after three people died after a Gulmohar tree crashed on their autorickshaw in Kalyan, one more person was killed in a similar incident near Runwal Nagar in Thane on Wednesday evening, taking the total death toll in tree crash-related incidents in a 24-hour period to four. In a separate rain-related mishap in Palghar, a 65-year-old man was electrocuted after he accidentally stepped on a live electricity cable that fell to the ground due to gusty winds. Unseasonal rains caused havoc, damaging 767 houses and 50 boats in Palghar district.In the Thane incident, a passenger in an auto died while the driver suffered serious injuries after a gulmohar tree fell on the vehicle. Driver Shafiq Shabbir (50), and Taufiq Saudagar, the passenger who resides in Rabodi, were trapped in the badly mangled auto till recuse teams rushed to their aid and took them to Civil Hospital."The duo sustained serious injuries. Saudagar, who was seated in the passenger seat behind, lost consciousness and was declared brought dead by the doctors, while Shabbir was admitted for injuries to his head," said Yasin Tadvi, in-charge, Thane regional disaster management cell.Earlier on Tuesday, a gulmohar tree had similarly collapsed on an auto in Kalyan East, killing three, including dabbawalah Tukaram Khengale (47), auto driver Umashankar Varma (52), and Lata Raut (47), and injuring an unidentified male passenger who jumped off the vehicle in time.In the wake of the Kalyan mishap, the BMC on Wednesday directed officials to create tree basins along city roads and fill them with soil, and clear the surrounding debris and garbage. NCP SP MLA Jitendra Awhad posted images of an inundated spot in Thane, while a few stretches on Eastern Express Highway also saw minor waterlogging.With inputs from Vishal Rajemahadik & Richa Pinto
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