As heavy overnight rain left Mumbai struggling, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday appealed to people not to leave home unless necessary. He said he has also asked the Police Commissioner not to allow anyone near the beaches.
Some areas in Mumbai received 300 mm of rainfall between 1-7 am this morning, leaving the streets waterlogged and impacting trains and flights. It’s still raining after a break.
Speaking to reporters about how Mumbai is trying to cope with the challenging situation, Mr Shinde detailed the steps taken by the civic and rescue teams.
Railway tracks were submerged at several places and the Railways, NDRF, and civic officials pumped out a lot of water, he said. The trains are running now.
“461 motor pumps of the municipal corporation and 200 pumps of the Railways are running. I have been in touch with all the departments since morning. Central and Harbour rail line services have started. I took stock of the entire state. There is an orange alert in coastal areas. Army, Navy, and Air Force have been asked to stay on alert,” said the Chief Minister.
Besides, seven pumping stations are also being built in the city, he said.
The Chief Minister said civic officials have been deployed in the waterlogged areas while schools have been given holidays and all agencies put on alert to avoid any untoward incident.
Mumbai is the only city with micro-tunneling, which is helping in draining the water, he said.
The city witnessed heavy downpour in the last 24 hours with the Met department issuing an orange alert for Mumbai, Thane, Palghar, and the Konkan Belt. Orange alert signifies the need to stay prepared amid heavy rain forecast.
Videos showed locals wading through waist-deep waters across the city while passengers at Dombivli waited for trains on submerged tracks. Over 50 flights have been cancelled and airlines warned fliers to leave for the airport only after checking their flight status.
