Satara boatman, nine-month-old baby from Sangli die as rain & thunderstorm wreak havoc

Kolhapur: Sudden gusty winds and hailstorms claimed two lives in western Maharashtra within hours — a nine-month-old infant boy died after being blown away along with his makeshift cradle in Sangli, while a boatman drowned after his speedboat capsized in the Koyna backwaters at Tapola in Satara.

The boy, Shrivardhan Anant Shejul, died after strong winds blew away the tin sheets holding his makeshift cradle at Khalati village in Sangli’s Jat tehsil on Wednesday evening.

“His parents work as sugar cane cutters and were staying in a makeshift house. The gusty winds ripped apart and blew away the tin shits supporting the cradle. The boy suffered head injuries,” a Sangli district disaster management official said. “The boy was taken to a hospital, where doctors declared him dead on arrival,” he said.

A Satara district official said the 35-year-old boatman who had gone missing after a tourist speedboat capsized in the Koyna dam backwaters at Tapola was found dead on Thursday, nearly 24 hours after the incident.

“The speedboat belonging to a local boat club overturned amid strong winds and thunderstorm near the bridge between Savari and Sonadi villages. Two tourists on board survived as they were wearing life jackets and managed to swim to safety. However, the boatman, Rupesh Tambe of Tapola, was not wearing life jacket and went missing in the reservoir,” Satara district disaster management head Devidas Tamhane said.

His body was recovered around 1pm on Thursday following an extensive search operation involving 15 boats.

Tamhane said stricter safety measures would be enforced for boat operators. "We will issue clear instructions to ensure operators strictly follow safety norms,” he said.

Stormy winds and rain caused widespread damage across the region on Wednesday. In Satara city’s Laxmi Tekdi area, around 40 makeshift houses were damaged, while three electricity poles collapsed, leading to power cuts lasting over 12 hours. The district recorded 5.1mm of rainfall in the 24 hours ending Thursday morning.

Satara municipal council president Amol Mohite said emergency teams, including disaster management personnel and power utility workers, had been deployed for immediate repairs and relief work.

Many affected families were left homeless, with their belongings destroyed. Anil Kamble, whose shanty was damaged, said, “My wife and I had gone to work. When we returned, we found that everything had collapsed. Our entire home, made of tin sheets, had crashed. Our cupboard, TV and our children’s schoolbooks were all damaged. We hope to receive some help from the administration.”

Though Thursday remained partly cloudy across Satara, Sangli, and Kolhapur districts, no rainfall was reported till evening. Temperatures dropped by 2-3°, offering brief relief from the summer heat.