Heavy rain in Mumbai, NDRF teams deployed; local train services partially hit

Mumbai, July 22

Heavy rains continued to lash Mumbai on the second consecutive day on Monday, with some areas receiving up to 34 mm of rainfall in just one hour in the morning, affecting local train services during the rush hour between Kalyan and Thakurli stations of the Central Railway network.

In the last 24 hours ended at 8 am, the island city recorded an average of 135 mm of rainfall, eastern Mumbai 154 mm, and western Mumbai 137 mm, officials said.

Three teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been deployed in Mumbai to tackle any situation amid the forecast of a high tide and heavy rains in the city and its suburbs.

In its forecast for the next 24 hours starting at 8 am on Monday, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted “heavy to very heavy rain in the city and suburbs, with the possibility of extremely heavy rain at isolated places”.

According to the civic body, a high tide of 4.59 metres is expected at 12.59 pm.

Malabar and Mulund Hill recorded 34 mm of rainfall between 6 am and 7 am, followed by Bhandup with 29 mm, Wadala East with 24 mm, and Versova with 20 mm.

Western Railway said local train services are running normally on Monday morning; however, commuters claimed trains were running late by five to 10 minutes.

Central Railway said local services on all four corridors are normal. Commuters, however, said train traffic was affected between Kalyan and Thakurli stations in the morning rush hour due to a signal problem.

“Many commuters are walking on the tracks as trains are halted for long,” a passenger said.

A civic official said buses of Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) were not diverted.

A day earlier, heavy downpours pounded Mumbai and suburbs, inundating roads in many areas, diverting flights, and briefly affecting local train traffic between Dadar and Matunga stations.