Waterlogging leaves Mumbai in a mess

Torrential rain accompanied by strong winds continued to pound the Mumbai Metropolitan Region on Thursday.  Waterlogging and traffic jams in several areas slowed down the fact-paced commercial capital of the country.

In the salt-pans in Vasai, more than 400 people were stranded as the water rose to alarming levels and gushed into over 100 to 125 houses. Twenty firemen of the Vasai Virar City Municipal Corporation and one boat was pressed into service, which rescued over 30 people, mainly senior citizens and ailing people. However, later, the water level started receding.

The twin townships of Vasai Virar received 200 to 250 mm rainfall in two days. The low-lying areas of Vasai and Nalasopara were inundated and road traffic was badly affected.

The Dahanu-Boisar belt too received good rain and in the past 24 hours, more than 300 to 350 mm rainfall was recorded. In Raigad district, Pen taluk received heavy rainfall, leaving several places flooded. The Kalyan-Dombivali area of Thane district received over 100 mm rainfall.

Mumbai too was pounded by overnight rain. In the past 24 hours, Mumbai city recorded 84 mm rainfall, eastern suburbs 76 mm and western suburban 96 mm, according to the disaster management unit of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. Water-logging was reported from Andheri-Goregaon on western suburbs and central Mumbai areas of Sion, Parel, Lalbaug and Hindmata.

The Regional Meteorological Centre’s Colaba observatory recorded 145 mm rainfall, while Santacruz recorded 104 mm. “Rain and showers are likely to occur at most places over Konkan-Goa and Madhya Maharashtra, in Marathwada, a few areas in the Gujarat region and isolated places in Saturashtra,” read the weatherman’s forecast for Friday.

“During the next 24 hours, the city is expected to witness more moderate to heavy rain. At present, the city is witnessing massive traffic jams. To top it all, a stretch between Dadar and Sena Bhavan have 200 potholes, causing more inconvenience to the residents,” private weather forecasting service Skymet Weather said.

There were endless traffic delays on the Versova bridge along the Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway, which joins Ghodbunder Road connecting Palghar and Thane districts. One side of the bridge is undergoing repair works.

Public Health Minister Dr Deepak Sawant had to walk for two km to avoid the jam. “This is an issue of the people," he said, adding that he along with Public Works Minister Eknath Shinde would meet Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to resolve the matter.