Heavy rains continue in Mumbai, suburbs; Powai lake overflows

Mumbai, July 5

Mumbai and its neighbouring districts were hit by heavy rains for the third consecutive day on Sunday, resulting in water-logging in several low-lying areas of the city.

The Powai lake here started overflowing in the morning after the heavy downpour, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said.

Mumbai Police urged citizens to stay away from the seashore and waterlogged areas.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast heavy to very heavy rainfall in Mumbai and neighbouring areas in next two days and asked fisherman on the Maharashtra-Goa coast not to venture into the sea.

Water-logging was reported in several Mumbai areas such as Chembur, Wadala, Dharavi, Andheri, Hindmata junction, Khar subway, Milan subway and Dahisar subway.

The Colaba observatory in South Mumbai recorded 129.6 mm rain in the 24 hours ending at 8.30 am on Sunday, while the Santacruz weather station in the western suburbs recorded 200.8 mm downpour in the same period.

“The heavy showers have led to waterlogging at several places across the city. We request Mumbaikars to stay updated through official sources and plan moving out likewise,” the Mumbai Police said in a tweet and urged people to stay away from the shore and waterlogged areas.

The Powai lake in suburban Mumbai started overflowing at 6 am on Sunday, the BMC said.

The water from the lake, having a storage capacity of 545 crore litres, is used for industrial purposes and it flows into the Mithi river.

The catchment area of the lake is 6.61 sq km.

Besides Mumbai, the neighbouring Thane, Palghar and Raigad districts have also been receiving heavy rains since last three days.

The IMD has said heavy rains would continue for the next two days in several parts of the state and strong winds with speed reaching 50 to 60 km per hour are likely to prevail over the Maharashtra-Goa coast on Monday and Tuesday.

It has forecast heavy to very heavy rainfall in Mumbai, Thane, Palghar, Raigad as well as Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg in Konkan Maharashtra in next two days.

Besides, Pune, Nashik, Dhule, Jalgaon, Nandurbar, Satara, Kolhapur, Parbhani, Nanded, Hingoli are also likely to receive heavy rains, it said. PTI