Over 70 passengers and more than 50 vehicles were stranded for nearly two hours on Sunday after technical issues affected the Ro-Ro ferry service between Saphale and Virar. Officials confirmed that there were no reported injuries, and all passengers, along with the vehicles, managed to disembark safely in Virar.
The Saphale-Virar Ro-Ro service transports passengers and vehicles across the Vaitarna creek in just 10 minutes. On Sunday, a ferry that left Jalsar in Saphale at 5:40 PM arrived at Virar’s Narangi jetty by 5:50 PM but could not dock due to a ramp malfunction. Port officials indicated that a hydraulic issue caused by a burst hose pipe led to the ramp failures, preventing disembarkation. Eyewitnesses noted that the situation was exacerbated by low tide conditions.
“Once we became aware of the situation, we began the necessary repairs. After fixing the hose pipe, the ramp was made operational again, allowing all passengers and vehicles to disembark safely. The entire jetty was cleared by 7:20 PM,” reported Captain CJ Lepande, Regional Port Officer of the Bandra group of Ports in Mumbai.
Lepande stated that the vessel was carrying at least 70 people, which included 17 four-wheelers and 35 two-wheelers at the time of the incident. A stranded passenger commented, “While the service is good, we experience long waiting times of up to three hours to use the Ro-Ro ferry. There is a pressing need to increase the frequency of these services, along with improved measures for passenger safety to prevent incidents like this in the future.”
Original Source: https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/mumbai/stuck-for-almost-two-hours-due-to-technical-snag-over-70-stranded-after-ro-ro-ferry-breaks-down-in-virar-10289763/
Category: Cities,Mumbai
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Publish Date: 2025-10-05 23:47:00
