Mumbai received the highest rainfall of the season within just 12 hours on Wednesday besides the highest-ever wind speed, the city’s civic body BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said.
The India Metrorological Department (IMD) has predicted more rainfall for Thursday saying in its morning bulletin that the southwesterly monsoonal flow over the Arabian Sea will continue over the next 24 hours.
Here are the latest developments:
* According to the BMC, Mumbai recorded 215.8 mm rain, followed by 101.9 mm in eastern suburbs and 76.03 mm in western suburbs. Upscale areas of the city like Malabar Hill and Peddar Road received 309 mm rainfall.
* The Colaba weather observatory in south Mumbai on Wednesday recorded its highest single-day precipitation in the last 22 years for the month of August, an IMD official told news agency PTI.
* Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday assured all possible support to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray regarding the situation prevailing in Mumbai and surrounding areas due to heavy rainfall.
* Three units of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are active and have been asked to be ready for immediate help in case of an emergency, the civic body said. It has opened temporary shelters for stranded passengers and others at its schools.
* The personnel of NDRF and Railway Protection Force (RPF) rescued 290 passengers from two local trains stranded on flooded tracks between the CSMT and Sandhurst Road stations on Wednesday. The joint operation was over at 10 pm with all the passengers rescued, said Shivaji Sutar, chief spokesperson of the Central Railway.
* The torrential rains caused extensive damage to the DY Patil Stadium in Nerul. Sanjay Kumar, who is the Commissioner of Navi Mumbai Police, informed about the damage on Twitter. He also posted pictures of the damage.
* Vihar lake, one of the reservoirs supplying water to Mumbai, overflowed on Wednesday at 10 pm due to incessant rains in its catchment areas since Tuesday. Vihar is the second lake after Tulsi which has overflowed.
* Several videos of rain havoc in Mumbai went viral on social media on Wednesday, showing floodwater inside shops, building compounds and slums.
* The Arabian Sea swelled and the water spilled over the outer road at Girgaon Chowpatty in south Mumbai on Wednesday afternoon. According to local residents, this was the first time they witnessed such heavy waterlogging on the road outside the chowpatty, Marine Drive and several other areas in south Mumbai.
* Meanwhile, orange alert has been issued for other districts in Maharashtra like Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg, Pune, Kolhapur and Satara.
