India: 49 flights cancelled after heavy rains in Mumbai – News

India’s financial capital received 300 mm of rain in six hours, schools also closed

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Vehicles drive through a flooded street after rain showers in Mumbai, July 8, 2024. Photo: AFP

Heavy rains flooded roads and railway lines in India’s financial capital Mumbai on Monday, disrupting flights and forcing the closure of schools and colleges.

Just before the morning rush hour, more than 300 mm (12 inches) of rain fell on the city of 12 million people in the six hours leading up to 7 a.m. (0130 GMT), city officials said in a statement. Further heavy downpours are forecast, accompanied by a high tide of 4.40 meters (14 feet) in the coastal city.

“There is heavy traffic on the roads and railway lines have also been affected,” Eknath Shinde, chief minister of Maharashtra, the western state whose capital is Mumbai, said on X, urging people to stay indoors.

Road users in Mumbai waded through knee-deep waters that partially submerged vehicles in many areas, while traffic clogged the city’s Eastern and Western Express Highways.

Monday’s rains also disrupted air traffic. Mumbai airport authorities had to suspend runway operations for over an hour from 2:22 am, airport sources said.

According to Flightradar24, a website that tracks flight data, more than 430 flights have been delayed and 49 cancelled. IndiGo, SpiceJet and Air India are among those reporting disruptions.

Flooding on the tracks forced railway authorities to cancel some long-distance trains. Television footage showed commuter trains stranded on flooded tracks and passengers walking on the tracks to reach their destinations.

“Floods caused by rains in Mumbai are an annual phenomenon. My BMW car is stuck in flood waters,” Anil Bore told news agency ANI, in which Reuters has a minority stake.

India’s seasonal monsoon rains, which begin in late May, bring respite from a scorching summer but have also triggered widespread flooding in recent years.

In the eastern state of Bihar, isolated cases of lightning strikes have killed 12 people, taking the toll to 20 since the beginning of July, a state government official said.

More than two million people have also been affected by floods in northeastern Assam, where the Kaziranga National Park, home to the rare one-horned rhino, was inundated. Six animals drowned, authorities said on Sunday.

Assam authorities said 66 people have died in floods and rain-related incidents since May.

Floods also affected 31 villages in Uttar Pradesh state, which borders Nepal, the state government said.

Torrential monsoon rains have caused flooding and landslides in Nepal, killing at least 11 people.

In Bangladesh, more than 2 million people have been affected by the third wave of floods since May, including 300,000 stranded in the north, officials from the Ministry of Disaster Management said.

With heavy rains forecast in the coming days, the situation could deteriorate, officials added.

“We are clearly seeing more rain this year. This is making it difficult for people, especially in low-lying areas, to secure their belongings and reach shelters on time,” said Liakath Ali, climate change programme manager at development agency BRAC.