Four students of a prominent Bandra College drowned at the Dhavari river near Sondai Fort in Raigad on Friday.
Police said the students were part of a group of 37 from a college in Bandra, who had gone for a trip. Police said three students lost their lives while trying to save an 18-year-old who was reportedly drowning.
According to police, the group, consisting of 22 male and 15 female students, travelled to Sondewadi by bus. They trekked to Sondai fort between 10am and 1:30 pm.
“They later trekked down and subsequently went to Dhavari river at Pokharwadi near Sondewadi village for a swim,” said an officer.
Around 2:30 p.m., an 18-year-old student, identified as Eklavya Umesh Singh, went missing.
“As the fellow students spotted him drowning, three others went to save him. However, they got pulled in and lost their lives,” said an officer.
The three students were identified as Ishant Dinesh Yadav (19), Akash Dharmadas Mane (26), and Ranath Mahadu Banda (18).
The students then informed the authorities, who recovered the bodies and rushed them to the hospital, where they were declared dead on arrival.
“We have registered a case of accidental death and are probing the matter,” an officer said.
