An 11-hour long rescue operation took place in Madhya Pradesh’s Khandwa district as four picnickers had reached a village-in-the-island after the river water level increased with heavy rains.
It took place in Handikundi district where the Sukta and Avana River valleys meet. Officials said that the group became trapped when water levels quickly rose, blocking their way back to safety.
The missing persons included Huzefa Hamid (40), Ali Asgar (35), Ayush (18) and Mayank alias Gopal (16). They were at the picnic about 20 kilometres from the district headquarters when the situation went south.
A team of State Disaster Emergency Response Force (SDERF) immediately rushed to the scene upon receiving information from the police control room at about 6.15 pm on Thursday and started a rescue operation.
First, a motorboat equipped with safety ropes was taken to the island but because of the strong river current, it was abandoned, officials said.
While developing an alternate rescue plan, the SDERF staff waited for the water level to drop back down. With slightly less difficult weather, rescuers were able to undoubtedly tow a motorboat to the island using secured safety ropes.
The operation lasted almost a full day before it was finished around 4:45 am on Friday, during which all four were safely recovered to the shore.
The SDERF team’s success in rescuing without causing any damage or hurting any of the passengers has been attributed to its patience and coordination.