Maharashtra Rains: Lightning and Heavy Showers Kill Eight Across State; Red Alert for Coastal Districts

At least eight people have died and ten others sustained injuries as heavy rainfall, accompanied by lightning, battered several parts of Maharashtra, according to officials on Sunday. The India Meteorological Department has issued a red alert for the coastal districts of Ratnagiri and Raigad, warning of extremely heavy rainfall. An orange alert has been declared for Palghar, Thane, Sindhudurg, and the ghat regions of Pune, Satara, and Kolhapur.

Rescue operations are underway with teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) deployed in the affected areas.  In the 24-hour period ending at 11 am, Ratnagiri recorded the highest rainfall at 88.1 mm, followed by Raigad (65.3 mm), Sindhudurg (43.8 mm), Thane (29.6 mm), and Yavatmal (27.5 mm), as per the state disaster management authority.

The fatalities, mostly resulting from lightning strikes, were reported from Mumbai, Sindhudurg, Dhule, Nashik, Sambhajinagar, Nandurbar, and Amravati. In the Konkan region, the Jagbudi River in Ratnagiri district has risen above the warning level. Authorities have raised concerns over potential flooding in villages along the river—Khed, Alsure, Chinchghar, and Prabhuwadi—if water levels continue to rise, the disaster management report noted.