Finally, skies open up, pour misery

CHANDIGARH: Serpentine queues of vehicles coupled with chaos, leading to minor skirmishes, altercations and accidents at various junctions in the city were the order of the day as it rained heavily on Thursday morning. The much-awaited downpour for a couple of hours brought the entire city to a virtual standstill.

Commuters wade through a waterlogged road in Chandigarh on Thursday. Tribune photo: Pradeep Tewari

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, July 27

Serpentine queues of vehicles coupled with chaos, leading to minor skirmishes, altercations and accidents at various junctions in the city were the order of the day as it rained heavily on Thursday morning. The much-awaited downpour for a couple of hours brought the entire city to a virtual standstill.

As the downpour started in the morning, it brought cheer to city residents driving across the city. However, soon the cheer gave way to despair after motorists started getting stuck on waterlogged roads.

Vehicles were seen caught in traffic snarls at all major intersections, including the Press light point, Sector 17, Matka Chowk, the stadium roundabout in Sector 16, Sector 22, the Aroma light point, the Sector 34/35 light point, Sector 20 Gurdwara Chowk, the GMCH, Sector 32, roundabout and the Tribune roundabout. It took almost 10 minutes for commuters to drive through major intersections in the city.

Minor accidents due to bumper-to-bumper traffic were reported from various parts of the city.

Several two-wheelers met with accidents at the Sector 18/19/20/21 roundabout that was choked with water. Cars broke down at various places after water seeped into the engines. Balbir, a Sector 15 resident, was stuck at the Sector 20 Gurdwara Chowk after his car broke down due to a waterlogged road. The water on the road left him stranded for over two hours.

Several commuters were left stranded on Dakshin Marg due to the downpour.

Although policemen could be seen at various intersections to regulate traffic, as the downpour began and roads got waterlogged, they were left with no option but to look for shelter.

A traffic policeman at the GMCH, Secto 32, roundabout said till the time the rain was normal, he regulated traffic. However, the moment it turned into a downpour, he was forced to look for cover.

A police official said the traffic staff were deployed in various parts of the city to regulate traffic and to ensure minimum inconvenience to commuters. The situation turned normal later in the afternoon.