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Torrential rain, floods paralyse Mumbai

Last Updated 20 September 2017, 21:11 IST

Heavy spells of intermittent rain accompanied by strong winds completely threw life in Mumbai and its suburbs out of gear on Wednesday.

However, weathermen clarified that there were no cyclones over the Mumbai Metropolitan Region or Maharashtra.

Flight operations at the Chhatrapati Shivaji international airport continued to be affected because of the heavy downpour, poor visibility conditions and a SpiceJet aircraft skidding and overshooting the main runway and getting stuck in the mud. All 183 people, including crew members, are safe.

The main runway is expected to return to normalcy late Wednesday. As many as 120 flights were cancelled and more than 50 diverted to other airports during the day. “The NOTAM (notice to airmen) for closure of the main runway has been extended till 6 am on Thursday,” an official of the Mumbai International Airport Ltd said. This is the biggest disruption at the Mumbai airport in a decade.

Several low-lying areas in central Mumbai like Parel and Dadar and some areas of the suburbs like Chembur, Kurla, Andheri, Malad, Borivali and Dahisar experienced waterlogging, slowing down road traffic.

The services of the Central and Western Railway were delayed by 15 to 30 minutes. Road traffic was badly affected and it was difficult for commuters to reach stations and take trains to workplaces.

“Somehow I reached Bhayender around 11 pm and then walked home, which took me another hour,” said Debasish Saha, a resident of western suburbs.

“In the morning, there was no scope of going to the station as there was waterlogging in our area,” said Nabendu Bhowmick, a resident of Vasai.

“The situation is not as it was last month. We have worked out a plan and ensured that people are safe and not put to inconvenience,” said Mumbai Mayor Prof Vishwanath Mahadeshwar. According to officials, as many as seven people were reported missing.
 
As a precautionary measure, the Maharashtra government closed all the schools and colleges in Mumbai and its suburbs for a day. Thin attendance was observed at offices and workplaces.

Besides the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, the entire coastal Konkan belt and Sahyadri ranges received good rainfall.

The big towns of Pune and Nashik, which along with the the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, form the Golden Triangle, too, received heavy rainfall over the past 24 hours.

The catchment area of six major dams, including Koyna (Satara), Radhanagari (Kolhapur), Dhamni (Palghar), Khadakvasla (Pune) and Gangapur (Nashik), received good rainfall and the gates had to be opened.  Reports from Pune said that Bhide Pul was underwater and several two-wheelers and four-wheelers were affected by the inundation.
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(Published 20 September 2017, 05:02 IST)

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