Tata Harrier Stuck In Flooded Underpass: Video Shows What Really Happened
We recently reported about a Tata Harrier that lost control and got submerged in a flooded underpass in Maharashtra’s Thane. It had two inside, who were rescued by two locals from the place. A video of it showed how smart moves from the rescue team proved to be critical in getting the trapped occupants out in time. Now another video has surfaced online, which shows how the Harrier go stuck in the flooded underpass. It seems to be the sheer negligence of the driver that led this SUV to its unfortunate plight.
It has been raining heavily in Many parts of Maharashtra for the past few days. This underpass in Thane connects the Narivali and Uttarshiv villages. It got flooded due to the heavy downpour. As can be seen in the video, the water level was quite high.
It reached atleast one third of the height of the underpass itself. The standard height of an underpass on Indian highways is around 16.4 ft. The water level here, could have been atleast 4 ft. Needless to say, these are assumptions made from the two videos alone.
The video shows the Harrier entering the underpass from one side. Vehicles can be seen on either side of it, stranded due to the flooding. The Harrier driver, however, is confident and drives straight into it. Afterall, he has one of India’s most celebrated SUV. Land Rover- derived platform, butch stance, ‘desh ka loha’... the floods shouldn’t matter at all!
What he did forget, however, were the actual capabilities and limitations of his car, and basic physics! The Harrier has a wading depth of 600 millimeters (approximately 2 ft). The ground clearance is 205 mm. Clearly, the water column here was taller than what it could safely wade through.
The driver, however, confidently takes the SUV into the waterlogged patch. It enters smoothly and wades through for some distance. We can see the depth increasing as he moves forward. Soon, the water level reaches above the tyres, and the driver senses danger. The Harrier is seen taking a left turn, which seems intentional. Unfortunately, the water level on the left was much higher than the driver had expected.
The vehicle soon plunges into it, nose down. The Buoyant forces soon lift its rear, while the weight of the engine and other mechanicals causes the front end to sink. The bonnet gets completely submerged. Water starts oozing into the cabin as well. It is at this point that the locals carried out the rescue operation.
In cases such as this, the insurance company can deny the owner's claims over specific damages caused to the vehicle. From the videos, it is clear that the SUV had severe water ingress. The same should have caused major damage to its various systems, including the powertrain. Repairs will cost a handsome sum. Most comprehensive policies cover damage to the vehicle caused by natural disasters like floods.
However, they do not cover ‘losses due to hydrostatic lock’. A hydrostatic lock is when water enters the engine cylinders and causes it to seize. It seems to have happened in this case. These losses are unlikely to be covered. The owner will have to shell out a lot to get the vehicle operational again.
The owner of this Harrier seems to have done a terrible mistake by taking the vehicle to the heavily flooded patch. As responsible drivers, we should not replicate such errors.