Boy nearly saved man who drowned in Dahisar
By Gagandeep Singh Dhillon
15-year-old boy had come to A the rescue of Ravi Sharma and had nearly saved him from drowning in a quarry pit at the edge of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park in Dahisar on Sunday evening. Ravi and two of his friends had come to the quarry pit and had dived in to swim from one end to the other. Ravi got into trouble and eventually drowned. His body was fished out by a Navy team on Monday morning.
According to local residents, Rajan Singh, who lives nearby and was present near the quarry, rushed to the spot along with a friend and swam towards 25-year-old Ravi to save him. Ravi even managed to hold Rajan's leg for a few seconds but his hand slipped and he drowned.
The incident occurred around 3 pm at the Maharashtra Mines quarry pit located near Dharkhadi in Dahisar. According to residents, the quarry pit is a tourist spot of sorts and a large number of people go there on Sundays for a picnic or to swim across the pit.
“My friend Rahul Sarodya , 17, and I were sitting at a spot overlooking the quarry. When the three of them dived into the water, Ravi jokingly said that he is drowning and even swam backwards for a while. Soon, however, all three of them could be seen struggling to make it to the other end. This time, Ravi genuinely cried for help but his friends were in no condition to help him as they seemed to be struggling to swim. I raised an alarm and rushed to the quarry to save him,“ Rajan told Mirror.
He added, “Ravi was last seen somewhere in the middle of the pit and when I reached there, he held my leg.Unfortunately, his hand slipped just as I tried to pull him towards me. By this time, even I had run out of breath. I searched for him again but failed to locate him. I had to then swim back to the end of the pit.“ Meanwhile, Ravi's friends and other people present there called the police and soon BMC officials, fire brigade personnel and the police reached the spot. In the evening, a Navy rescue team was called from INS Hamala in Malad but Ravi's body could not be recovered on Sunday night. Officials left at midnight and returned on Monday morning when divers from the Navy recovered the body around 9 am. The body was taken to Shatabdi Municipal Hospital in Kandivali for a post-mortem examination.
VICTIM WAS SOLE-BREADWINNER
Ravi was the only bread earner in his family. He came to Mumbai from his village in Siddharthnagar district in UP around two years ago to send back money to his mother and wife. His uncle Saddhu Sharma, who lives in Mumbai, said that Ravi's father died several years ago due to which he came to Mumbai to make a living as his family is very poor. “He is survived by two young children, a wife and mother who will not be able to bear the tragedy,“ he said. Ravi worked in a company which moulded cables and other items and lived in the company premises in Dahisar.
RARE INCIDENT
Local residents said that it was a rare incident as it was the first time in decades that the quarry pit was filled with rainwater. “Every year, the water level remains low as most of it gets drained out.However, this year, there was no drainage as the adjacent land is privately owned and the drainage was blocked, due to which water rose to around 1520 feet following the recent rains,“ said Shiva Kharad, a resident.
Another resident, Anil, said that there is a dam further ahead towards the national park near which at least one person drowns every year. “Deer and leopards also come down to Dharkhadi, but leopards mostly attack dogs if they come down,“ he said. Residents added that around 15 years ago, a man had drowned in the quarry pit in a similar way.
15-year-old boy had come to A the rescue of Ravi Sharma and had nearly saved him from drowning in a quarry pit at the edge of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park in Dahisar on Sunday evening. Ravi and two of his friends had come to the quarry pit and had dived in to swim from one end to the other. Ravi got into trouble and eventually drowned. His body was fished out by a Navy team on Monday morning.
According to local residents, Rajan Singh, who lives nearby and was present near the quarry, rushed to the spot along with a friend and swam towards 25-year-old Ravi to save him. Ravi even managed to hold Rajan's leg for a few seconds but his hand slipped and he drowned.
The incident occurred around 3 pm at the Maharashtra Mines quarry pit located near Dharkhadi in Dahisar. According to residents, the quarry pit is a tourist spot of sorts and a large number of people go there on Sundays for a picnic or to swim across the pit.
“My friend Rahul Sarodya , 17, and I were sitting at a spot overlooking the quarry. When the three of them dived into the water, Ravi jokingly said that he is drowning and even swam backwards for a while. Soon, however, all three of them could be seen struggling to make it to the other end. This time, Ravi genuinely cried for help but his friends were in no condition to help him as they seemed to be struggling to swim. I raised an alarm and rushed to the quarry to save him,“ Rajan told Mirror.
He added, “Ravi was last seen somewhere in the middle of the pit and when I reached there, he held my leg.Unfortunately, his hand slipped just as I tried to pull him towards me. By this time, even I had run out of breath. I searched for him again but failed to locate him. I had to then swim back to the end of the pit.“ Meanwhile, Ravi's friends and other people present there called the police and soon BMC officials, fire brigade personnel and the police reached the spot. In the evening, a Navy rescue team was called from INS Hamala in Malad but Ravi's body could not be recovered on Sunday night. Officials left at midnight and returned on Monday morning when divers from the Navy recovered the body around 9 am. The body was taken to Shatabdi Municipal Hospital in Kandivali for a post-mortem examination.
VICTIM WAS SOLE-BREADWINNER
Ravi was the only bread earner in his family. He came to Mumbai from his village in Siddharthnagar district in UP around two years ago to send back money to his mother and wife. His uncle Saddhu Sharma, who lives in Mumbai, said that Ravi's father died several years ago due to which he came to Mumbai to make a living as his family is very poor. “He is survived by two young children, a wife and mother who will not be able to bear the tragedy,“ he said. Ravi worked in a company which moulded cables and other items and lived in the company premises in Dahisar.
RARE INCIDENT
Local residents said that it was a rare incident as it was the first time in decades that the quarry pit was filled with rainwater. “Every year, the water level remains low as most of it gets drained out.However, this year, there was no drainage as the adjacent land is privately owned and the drainage was blocked, due to which water rose to around 1520 feet following the recent rains,“ said Shiva Kharad, a resident.
Another resident, Anil, said that there is a dam further ahead towards the national park near which at least one person drowns every year. “Deer and leopards also come down to Dharkhadi, but leopards mostly attack dogs if they come down,“ he said. Residents added that around 15 years ago, a man had drowned in the quarry pit in a similar way.
