Landslide blocks Konkan Railway, thousands stranded
August 30th, 2011 - 12:49 pm ICT by IANSMumbai, Aug 30 (IANS) A major landslide blocked tracks in a section of the Konkan Railway Tuesday, hitting services between Mumbai and the southern states and leaving thousands of people who were going home for the Ganeshotsav festival stranded. There were no casualties.
A retaining wall, around 20 metres long, came crashing on the railway tracks near Pomendi, Ratnagiri district, around 225 km south of Mumbai, at 8.15 a.m., a Konkan Railway spokesperson said.
All trains from Kerala, Karnataka, Goa, Maharashtra and beyond to Gujarat and New Delhi have been held up at various points on the route till the tracks are cleared at Pomendi and the adjoining sections.
“Our team of engineers has rushed there with the required equipment. Work has started on a war-footing to restore services,” the official told IANS.
Despite torrential rains which continued for the fifth consecutive day in the coastal Konkan region and the Western Ghats, he expressed optimism that services would be restored by afternoon.
Thousands of Mumbaikars rushing to their native villages and towns in the Konkan districts have been stranded due to the train disruptions.
Many preferred to choose the road to ensure they reach on time for the 10-day Ganeshotsav festival starting Thursday.
This is the third time in the current monsoon that landslides have disrupted services on the Konkan Railway network in the Pomendi ghat section.
The official attributed it to heavy rains, loose soil conditions, falling rocks and stones which damaged or blocked the railway tracks.
He said the Konkan Railway is implementing remedial measures in a phased manner to arrest the problems by next monsoon.
Meanwhile, intermittent showers and heavy rains continued to lash Mumbai and its surrounding areas throughout Monday night. But there were no reports of waterlogging from any part of the city.
- Heavy rains and landslide disrupt Konkan rail services - Sep 03, 2011
- Konkan train services restored - Jun 19, 2011
- Konkan Railway route to normalise Thursday - Jul 19, 2011
- Rains wreak havoc in Maharashtra (Lead) - Aug 29, 2011
- Traffic on Konkan rail route resumes after 12 hours (Lead) - Aug 18, 2010
- Heavy rains hit trains in coastal Maharashtra - Jul 25, 2010
- Two killed as heavy rains lash coastal Maharashtra - Jul 22, 2010
- Heavy showers disrupt traffic on Konkan rail route - Jun 17, 2011
- Heavy rains disrupt life, rail links in coastal Maharashtra - Jul 24, 2010
- Heavy showers disrupt traffic on Konkan rail route (Lead) - Jun 17, 2011
- Mumbai-Goa highway blocked for second day - Sep 05, 2011
- Rains hit Konkan Railway services - Jul 17, 2011
- Landslide hit Konkan rail services - Aug 18, 2010
- Landslides disrupt Konkan Railway traffic - Jul 18, 2011
- Landslide blocks movement of Konkan Railway trains on west coast - Jul 27, 2010
Tags: disruptions, falling rocks, heavy rains, intermittent showers, konkan railway, landslides, loose soil, maharashtra, major landslide, native villages, railway network, ratnagiri district, remedial measures, retaining wall, rocks and stones, soil conditions, southern states, torrential rains, waterlogging, western ghats