Severe waterlogging was reported from various parts of Mumbai on Wednesday, 6 July, as the city continues to witness heavy showers.
A landslide was reported in the Chunabhatti area of Mumbai, injuring two people and leading to damage to three houses. Fire brigade reached the spot to help with rescue efforts, according to Mumbai Police.
Further, BEST bus routes were diverted in some areas, including Sangam Nagar Antop Hill, Hindmata Cinema, and Mankhurd Railway Station Subway, the BMC said on Wednesday morning.
Visuals from the state capital showed inundated streets, with commuters attempting to wade through the rain water.
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The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has sounded an orange alert for Mumbai till 9 July, while a red alert has been issued for some of its surrounding areas.
The weather agency has predicted "moderate to heavy rainfall" for Mumbai and its suburbs and the possibility of "very heavy to extremely heavy" showers at isolated places for the next few days.
In view of the same, over 3,500 people have been relocated from flood-prone and vulnerable areas throughout Maharashtra, where numerous districts, including Mumbai, experienced downpours.
On Tuesday, two people drowned after they went to take a bath in a pond in Mumbai's Dahisar area. A landslide was reported from Ghatkopar area.
In the 24-hour period ending at 8 am on Wednesday, the island city (south Mumbai) received an average 107 mm rainfall, while the eastern and western suburbs recorded 172 mm and 152 mm downpour, respectively, a civic official said.
As a result of the rain, the Powai lake overflowed on Tuesday, the BMC shared.
Railway Tracks Inundated, Trains Delayed
Although several tracks were inundated and trains delayed on account of the heavy rainfall. The trains, however, did not stop, Central Railway CPO Shivaji M Sutar told news agency ANI.
"Our teams work throughout the year for monsoon preparedness. We added additional pumps with higher capacities, micro tunnelling helped," he said.
Additionally, he said that plans for crowd management had been devised and the Railway Police was aiding their efforts.
"Our social media kept informing about late trains which helped public and us by controlling the crowd," he added.
CM Eknath Shinde Monitors Rain Situation
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde inspected the rain situation and said that eleven teams of the National Disaster Management Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Management Force (SDRF) have been deployed in various districts of the state.
"A total of 13 teams of 9 NDRF and 4 SDRF teams have been deployed at the base station," Shinde's office wrote in a tweet.
The CM said that the flood situation has prevailed at Chandurbazar and Morshi in Tivasa taluka of Amravati district and work is underway to evacuate the people of the village.
"At present, local rescue teams are working in the district," Shinde said in his tweet.
Chief Minister Shinde visited the Mumbai Municipal Corporation's Emergency Management Control Room on Tuesday to assess the situation.
"Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal informed that 5000 CCTVs in Mumbai city and suburbs are keeping a close watch on the current rainfall situation in the city," he said.
"NDRF as well as other agencies have been instructed to be ready," he added.
The chief minister was accompanied by chief secretary Manukumar Shrivastava, civic commissioner Chahal and other senior officials during his visit to the BMC's disaster control room.
A red alert, predicting heavy to very heavy rains at isolated places from 4 June to 8 June, has been issued for Raigad, Ratnagiri, and Sindhudurg districts. A yellow alert has also been issued for Thane and Palghar districts.
(With inputs from PTI and ANI)
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