Mumbai:

As heavy overnight rain left Mumbai struggling, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday appealed to people not to leave home unless necessary. He said he has also asked the Police Commissioner not to allow anyone near the beaches.

Some areas in Mumbai received 300 mm of rainfall between 1-7 am this morning, leaving the streets waterlogged and impacting trains and flights. It’s still raining after a break.

Speaking to reporters about how Mumbai is trying to cope with the challenging situation, Mr Shinde detailed the steps taken by the civic and rescue teams.

Railway tracks were submerged at several places and the Railways, NDRF, and civic officials pumped out a lot of water, he said. The trains are running now.

“461 motor pumps of the municipal corporation and 200 pumps of the Railways are running. I have been in touch with all the departments since morning. Central and Harbour rail line services have started. I took stock of the entire state. There is an orange alert in coastal areas. Army, Navy, and Air Force have been asked to stay on alert,” said the Chief Minister.

Besides, seven pumping stations are also being built in the city, he said.

The Chief Minister said civic officials have been deployed in the waterlogged areas while schools have been given holidays and all agencies put on alert to avoid any untoward incident.

Mumbai is the only city with micro-tunneling, which is helping in draining the water, he said.

The city witnessed heavy downpour in the last 24 hours with the Met department issuing an orange alert for Mumbai, Thane, Palghar, and the Konkan Belt. Orange alert signifies the need to stay prepared amid heavy rain forecast.

Videos showed locals wading through waist-deep waters across the city while passengers at Dombivli waited for trains on submerged tracks. Over 50 flights have been cancelled and airlines warned fliers to leave for the airport only after checking their flight status.

Mumbai:

Heavy rain overnight pounded large parts of Mumbai and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), affecting suburban and long-distance trains, roads, and highways. This deluge stranded lakhs of commuters on their way to work on the first working day of the week and led to the closure of schools for the morning session.

In just six hours, several areas in the city recorded a staggering 200 mm to 300 mm of rainfall from 1 am to 7 am, according to the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). The downpour persisted, with a forecast predicting heavy rain for the next two days.

#WATCH | Waterlogging triggered by heavy rain in King’s Circle area of Mumbai pic.twitter.com/v4ByKwhb3h

— ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2024

The city’s residents woke up to waterlogged roads, railway tracks, flooded low-lying areas, water in homes, shops, or offices, blocked subways, and many places rendered inaccessible for commuting.

#WATCH | Pedestrians and vehicles cross heavily waterlogged streets at King’s Circle amid rains in Mumbai

A commuter says, “My car is stuck on the road. There is no point in blaming the government for the rains. The government is doing its job.” pic.twitter.com/2v16Osb8NZ

— ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2024

The weather office has predicted light to moderate spell of rainfall over Mumbai today. NDRF teams have been deployed in Thane, Vasai ( Palghar), Mahad (Raigad), Chiplun (Ratnagiri), Kolhapur, Sangli, Satara Ghatkopar, Kurla and Sindhudurg.

NDRF said it has also deployed three regular teams at Andheri and one team at Nagpur to “avert any untoward incident and give an appropriate response in case of any flood-like situation.”

Commuters also encountered delays or cancellations of suburban local trains – Mumbai’s lifeline, which transports over 8.50 million people daily. Huge crowds gathered at almost all railway stations along the Central Railway and Western Railway networks spanning Mumbai, Thane, Palghar, and Raigad (MMR).

#WATCH | Maharashtra: Heavy rain in Mumbai causes waterlogging.

(Visuals from Dadar area) pic.twitter.com/Drx0FY6wEV

— ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2024

Additionally, crucial trains that ferry thousands of commuters on the Mumbai-Gujarat, Mumbai-Pune, and Mumbai-Kolhapur routes faced cancellations, massive delays, or became stranded at stations en route.

Within Mumbai, several subways, including those in Santacruz, Andheri, Jogeshwari, Malad, Kandivali, and Dahisar, were inundated with 3-5 feet of water, halting east-west traffic. Railway tracks were flooded near Kalyan, Dombivali, Ulhasnagar, Thane, Bhandup, Kurla, Sion, and Wadala, further impacting suburban train services.

#WATCH | Maharashtra: Severe waterlogging in different parts of Mumbai, following incessant heavy rainfall. pic.twitter.com/O6VUuYOknr

— ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2024

Several housing complexes in Dahisar, Borivali, Kandivali, Malad, Jogeshwari, Andheri, Santacruz, Sion, Wadala, Kurla, Ghatkopar, and Bhandup experienced severe waterlogging. Scores of vehicles, both big and small, were either stuck or partially to fully submerged in different areas of the city. There were numerous incidents of tree falls and other minor accidents, though no casualties have been reported so far.