21 dead, 203 flights cancelled as record rains paralyse Mumbai: Top updates

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis visited the BMC Disaster Management control room and took stock of the situation in Mumbai with civic officials

Incessant rain left Mumbai paralysed on Tuesday as many parts of the financial capital remained waterlogged. 

Heavy rains lashing Mumbai since Sunday threw rail, air and road traffic out of gear, with several trains and flights cancelled.

"A total of 203 flights were cancelled at the Mumbai airport due to inclement weather and non-availability of the main runway for operations," an airport official said.

Twenty one people were killed and 78 injured in a wall collapse in the northern suburb of Malad in Mumbai early Tuesday following heavy rains.

Here are the top developments related to the incessant rain in Mumbai:

10:23 PM

One Mumbai lifeline chugs along miraculously despite heavy rains

Almost like a monsoon miracle, one of the two lifelines of Mumbai, the Western Railway (WR), managed to stay afloat and chug along despite the city notching over 1,000 mm rainfall in the past 72 hours, officials said on Tuesday.

 

The WR suburban and long-distance services were affected but they did not completely crash like its counterpart, Central Railway, which remained shut for nearly 15 hours on Tuesday after Mumbai recorded the heaviest 24-hour July rain in 45 years.

 

8:57 PM

Around 70 domestic arrivals and 81 domestic departures have been cancelled at Mumbai airport

7:28 PM

Maharashtra toll rises to 35

Twenty one people were killed and 78 injured in a wall collapse in the northern suburb of Malad in Mumbai early Tuesday following heavy rains.

 

Two persons died in Malad after they were locked up in a car flooded with rain water. One person was electrocuted in Vile Parle and a security guard was killed in a wall collapse in suburban Mulund.

 

In Pune, six labourers were killed and three injured after a wall collapsed in Ambegaon area late Monday night. A wall collapse in Kalyan in Thane district early Tuesday killed three people, officials said.

6:45 PM

Mumbai airport main runway likely to be operational by Thursday

In more woes for airlines, the main runway of the Mumbai airport is likely to remain closed for flight operations till Thursday as it will take more time to remove the SpiceJet plane that was stuck partially on the runway on Monday, according to officials.

 

Heavy rains in the city have already disrupted operations at the airport, with at least 52 flights being cancelled and 55 flights being diverted on Tuesday. Read more

4:47 PM

Transport services severely affected by record rainfall

The Central Railway (CR) suspended services at several spots between Mumbai-Thane and suburban train services were disrupted on the Western Railway due to incessant record rain, officials said.

 

Long-distance trains from different parts of India, expected to reach Mumbai, have also been stranded at various locations en route, details of which were awaited.

 

Till Tuesday noon, at least 55 incoming flights were diverted, including 26 international. There were 13 go-arounds, and cancellations of 18 incoming flights including four international and 24 departures including four international, said a spokesperson for Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL).

 

Road traffic also continued to be sluggish for the second consecutive day in the city and the suburbs as many areas were waterlogged and the subways in Andheri, Jogeshwari, Vile Parle and Dahisar flooded.

 

A road caved in near a construction site in Chandivali and locals claimed that some people may have been washed away in the incident. A few vehicles and autorickshaws were stuck in the cave-in, which was at least 10 feet deep, said a local resident Pradeep Menon.

 

4:44 PM

Mumbai paralysed by record July rainfall

Mumbai received 375 mm of rainfall on Monday, making it the maximum July downpour that the city has seen over a 24-hour period, breaking the record of 1974.

4:30 PM

Mumbai rains: Santa Cruz recorded 20 mm of rain in the last 6 hours, says Skymet

4:02 PM

Despite forecast of heavy rains and high tides we ran services last night: Sunil Udasi, CPRO, Central Railway

3:59 PM

Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala slams Maharashtra govt for Mumbai's rain woes

1:52 PM

Barring 2005 deluge, Mon-Tue Mumbai rainfall highest since 1974

The rainfall in the 24-hour period before 8.30 am Tuesday was the highest since the July 26, 2005 deluge in Mumbai, officials said.

 

The rainfall during the 24-hour period was 375.2 mm, the official said, quoting data from the Santa Cruz-based Mumbai Regional Centre of the IMD.

 

Barring the 2005 flooding of Mumbai, the highest rainfall in a single day in the metropolis was on July 5, 1974. The rainfall recorded by the Santa Cruz observatory on that day was also 375.2 mm.

1:51 PM

"It's not BMC's fault, blame the monsoon": Sanjay Raut on Mumbai wall collapse

Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Tuesday claimed that the BMC was prepared for monsoon but tragedies like wall collapse that claimed 13 lives in the city occur due to heavy downpour.

 

"It's not about the failure of BMC. What happened in Pune and Mumbai is an accident and the Chief Minister has announced five lakhs to the victims. It is raining so heavily that if it rains in the mountain areas, the mountain will fall. Mumbai and Pune wall collapse are accidents and they can happen anywhere", he said.

11:14 AM

Mumbai rains: Photo by Hitish Patel

10:39 AM

Main runway at the airport is closed: Mumbai airport official

Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) spokesperson: Main runway at the airport is closed but alternative runway is functional. Delays and diversions of flights are taking place.

10:33 AM

Mumbai University postpones all examinations today

The Mumbai University has postponed the exam of B.Sc Computer Science for first and second year students due to heavy rains, said an official of the Mumbai University.

 

The schedule of the cancelled examinations will be announced soon. Today, no examination of Mumbai University will be held due to heavy rainfall, Higher and Technical Education Minister Vinod Tawde said.

10:30 AM

Mumbai rains update: 54 flights diverted, 52 cancelled at Mumbai airport

54 flights diverted & 52 cancelled at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) due to inclement weather.