Waterlogging at Grant Road on Wednesday. (Express Photo: Laxman Singh)
Mumbai Rains Live Updates: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange alert in Mumbai and Thane Wednesday, warning of very heavy rains. The Santacruz observatory recorded 286.4mm rainfall in the 24 hours ending 8.30 am Wednesday, the fourth highest daily figure between 1974 and 2020, according to the weather agency. Meanwhile, Santacruz reported 286.4mm rainfall, Colaba 147.8mm, Thane 119.8mm, Ratnagiri 39.5mm and Dhanu 42.1mm.
Transportation services took a hit Wednesday due to the waterlogged roads and tracks. The Central Railways halted local services between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) and Thane on the main line, and CSMT to Vasi on Harbour line. Central Railways Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) Shivaji Sutar said, “Tracks are submerged. It is not safe to run a local train till water level goes down. Looking at safety of commuters, it is decided to shut the services till water recedes.” Two long distance trains (02110, 02109) were cancelled and three (05645, 01301, 02534) were rescheduled.
Due to the situation, Mumbai’s civic body, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), has appealed to non-essential business establishments to remain closed today. Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Singh has also requested people to remain indoors.
Mumbai rains: At the Central Business District of Belapur on Wednesday. (Express Photo: Narendra Vaskar)
Five teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are on standby in view of heavy rains that have lashed Mumbai, Thane and Palghar districts and caused water-logging in many areas, Maharashtra Relief and Rehabilitation Minister Vijay Wadettiwar said on Wednesday. Mumbai and neighbouring areas received intense spells of rain since Tuesday night, leaving many parts of the metropolis in waist deep water and disrupting rail and road traffic.
Wadettiwar said in a statement that heavy rains caused flood-like situation in many places, adding that Disaster Management department is keeping a close watch on the situation.
The Santacruz observatory recorded 286.4mm rainfall in the 24 hours ending 8.30 am Wednesday, the fourth highest daily figure between 1974 and 2020, according to the weather agency. Prior to this, it reported 318.2mm rainfall on September 23, 1981; 312.4mm on September 23, 1993; and 303.7mm on September 20, 2017.
The Bombay High Court will not hear any cases today, including virtual hearings, due to the heavy rainfall and waterlogging. Incidentally, the bail pleas of actress Rhea Chakraborty and her brother Showik Chakraborty were to be heard today by a single bench of Justice Sarang Kotwal through video-conferencing. Rhea and Showik have been arrested in a drugs case related to the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput. Also, a division bench led by Justice S J Kathawalla was to hear actress Kangana Ranaut's petition against the BMC over demolition of her bungalow in Pali Hill.
At least 50 people living in Kranti Nagar, Kurla, on the banks of Mithi river in Mumbai, have been evacuated by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) due to rising waters. (Input from Sanjana Bhalerao)
(Reuters Photo: Francis Mascarenhas)
Due to heavy rains in Mumbai, several areas are waterlogged. This has caused a disruption to bus services. Several buses have been diverted. Here is the latest update from BEST:
Train services on Central & Harbour Lines have been suspended due to waterlogging, following the heavy rainfall last night. However, the Western Railway is functioning, tweets BMC.
Two long distance trains have been cancelled and three have been rescheduled. Here are the details:
02110 Manmad-Mumbai Special Cancelled
02109 Mumbai-Manmad special Cancelled
05645 LTT-Guwahati Special at 1300 hrs Rescheduled
01301 CSMT-KSR Bengaluru Special at 1230 hrs Rescheduled
02534 CSMT-Lucknow Special at 1240 hrs Rescheduled
Here's a video from our photojournalist Narendra Vaskar from the Sion-Panvel road near Nerul. Due to waterlogging, there are traffic jams, and some vehicles have broken down
The Central Railways has halted local services between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) and Thane on the main line, and CSMT to Vasi on Harbour section. Central Railways Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) Shivaji Sutar said, "Tracks are submerged. It is not safe to run a local train till water level goes down. Looking at safety of commuters, it is decided to shut the services till water recedes."
Good morning and welcome to our blog on the Mumbai rains. Several parts of the city are flooded due to heavy overnight rains. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted intense to very intense rainfall till around noon. Follow this blog for the latest news and updates.