Rains lash Mumbai, flights delayed and transport affected as city experiences water-logging

There appears to be little respite for those hoping for a break from the rains that have punished Mumbai for the past few days. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a warning saying that residents should expect heavy rainfall over the next three days.IMD officials have attributed the rains to upper-air cyclonic circulation over south Rajasthan and a low-pressure area which is moving westward from Odisha, reports The Free Press Journal. An IMD official was quoted as saying, "There was widespread rainfall in the city and it will continue in a similar manner for next three days. The eastern suburbs of Mumbai received good rainfall as compared to other areas of the city."[caption id="attachment_3986173" align="alignleft" width="380"]

Rains lash Mumbai. Image courtesy: Firstpost/Anirudh Regidi[/caption]According to CNN-News18, transport has been affected by the heavy rains as flights are experiencing a 20 minute delay on average. Further, the suburban railway is experiencing heavy delays with many trains being cancelled or delayed for long periods. The stations too have been affected as water-logging has been reported at Sion, Mahim and Bandra stations.Further, the city is likely to experience a high tide measuring 3.32 metres in height at 4.35 pm on Tuesday.Schools and colleges remain open for the time being but as the rain continues to pour, that could change.On Monday, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had taken heed of the IMD warning and said it was ready to tackle "any eventuality". It had said that the weather station in Mumbai city had recorded 30.92 mm rain, while those in eastern and western suburbs recorded 15.56 mm and 12.42 mm rainfall respectively during that period," a statement issued by civic body had said.A BMC official had also said that four minor incidents of tree branches falling, five cases of short-circuit and three cases of collapse of parts of houses had been reported.With inputs from PTI