Rain cripples Mumbai, 4 drown; schools and colleges shut doors

Mangalore Today News Network

Mumbai, Aug 05, 2019 : Incessant rain crippled normal life in Mumbai and adjoining areas such as Thane, Palghar and Navi Mumbai on Saturday. The central and harbour lines of the railway network were disrupted, while waterlogging led to traffic snarls across the city. Three college students drowned after water surged at the Pandavkada falls, even as the city witnessed its highest tide this monsoon at 4.9 metres, Yahoo reported.

 

For 50-year-old Susheela Chavan, living in the Kranti Nagar slums of Kurla, it is an annual affair to find the authorities knocking on her door, asking her family to evacuate from their home along the Mithi river. However, this time, she along with her husband and two children, were asked to vacate their house twice in just over the span of a month once on Saturday and once after heavy rainfall on July 2.

After incessant rain since Friday night, the Mithi river, Mumbai s mother drain , reached its danger mark of 3.25 metres. As many as 150 people living on its banks in Kranti Nagar were shifted to a safe zone at 10.30 am on Saturday.

Manish Valanju, assistant municipal commissioner, L Ward, said, Preventive evacuation of inhabitants around the river was required. Due to overflowing of the Mithi, there was waterlogging reported on tracks near Kurla station.

The Dahisar river at the north end of the city also began overflowing. The state forest department closed Mumbai s Sanjay Gandhi National Park after Tulsi Lake and Dahisar river overflowed.

Severe waterlogging was reported in Kanpali, as it received 41 mm of rainfall within an hour between 7 am and 8 am. Saturday s downpour left many commuters stranded at Mulund railway station, which received 109 mm of rainfall over 10 hours till Saturday evening.

Over 50 residents of Trimurti Society and Hanuman Nagar in Kanpali (east) were provided food and snacks Saturday morning after the society flooded. The Malad and Andheri subways were temporarily shut at 9.30 am.

In Mumbai, waterlogging was also reported in Borivali, Kanpali, Andheri, Santacruz, Khar, Bandra, Matunga, Parel, Dadar, Kings Circle, Sion, Matunga, Vikhroli, Ghatkopar, Kurla, Bhandup and Mulund.

Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation s disaster management unit declared a holiday for schools and colleges in the second half of the day. The state school education department extended the deadline for the third round of FYJC admissions by a day to August 6.