Trees fall, branches snap, traffic crawls & several city areas plunge into darkness

Pune: A downpour accompanied by fierce gusts of wind on Thursday turned parts of Pune into scenes of chaos, as uprooted trees and crashing branches brought traffic to a standstill and put lives at risk. Commuters were stranded, vehicles damaged, and neighbourhoods plunged into darkness, highlighting what citizens and activists called years of neglect in tree maintenance and safety inspections.The residents said the absence of regular trimming and systematic checks of aging and dangerous trees had been a ticking time bomb. On Thursday, that bomb went off. The civic administration received over 100 complaints related to uprooted and fallen trees. While PMC's disaster management cell reported 21 cases, the fire brigade alone attended to 82 complaints from across the city.Kothrud resident Gauri Kulkarni said, "When residents request tree cutting or trimming, PMC officials do not treat these demands with urgency. To make matters worse, private contractors charge exorbitant fees."Responding to the criticism, Omprakash Diwate, additional commissioner of PMC, said, "We have issued instructions to the ward offices and the garden department to identify and trim dangerous trees." Officials said tree-cutting vehicles and specialised cutters were rushed to affected areas, with fire brigade and health department personnel deployed for immediate assistance.Several narrow escapes were reported. A car was crushed after a tree fell near Jyoti Hotel, while the retaining wall of a mosque in Shivnerinagar collapsed under pressure. Fortunately, no injuries were reported in these cases.The impact was not limited to Pune. In Pimpri Chinchwad, at least 17 incidents of tree falls were recorded. Fire officer Rushikant Chipade said multiple four-wheelers suffered damage after trees collapsed in parking lots. "We pressed 10 fire tenders, two rescue vans and around 80 firemen into action to control the situation," he said. Additional incidents included a retaining wall collapse in Ravet and a fire at an MSEDCL substation, though officials confirmed there were no casualties.As the rain raged on, large parts of Pune and its suburbs were left without electricity. MSEDCL said the disruptions were caused by tripping of extra high voltage (EHV) and high-voltage lines, fallen trees, submerged feeder boxes and lightning strikes. Supply was gradually restored as teams worked through the night to carry out repairs.In Kothrud, a lightning strike damaged the lightning protection system of the Kundannagari feeder, though power was restored through an alternative route. A tripping incident on the Nanded City EHV line plunged areas in the Kothrud division into darkness for nearly half an hour. Resident Sudhir Khare said, "There was a power outage soon after rain started around 2.30pm. Electricity supply was restored in many areas after more than an hour. Professionals working from home had a harrowing time."Power disruptions were also reported from Shivajinagar, Ganeshkhind, Khadki, Bavdhan and Baner due to faults in power lines. In Pimpri and Bhosari, the Ravet 22 kV line tripped, affecting 58 transformers. A tree collapse at the old Parvati power substation worsened the situation, while waterlogging led to supply interruptions on Sinhagad Road and in Dhayari.Kondhwa resident Fiza Shaikh said, "Power went off as soon as the rain began and was not restored even after more than three hours. MSEDCL officials did not provide any update on when the supply would resume.""There was no power supply in our area for more than three hours. I am stuck in my workshop. I cannot go home as there is water everywhere on the roads," Som Deshmukh of Warje told TOI.MSEDCL officials said patrolling had been intensified along the Khadakwasla and Shravan feeder lines to detect and address faults immediately. Supply in Vadachiwadi, under the Bund Garden area, was hit after branches fell on overhead lines, though the Wadia feeder was later restored via an alternate route. Kondhwa and Yewalewadi residents also faced outages due to damage to a high-tension transmission line.