Mumbai woke up to overcast skies and gusty winds on Tuesday with no significant rainfall, offering temporary relief after two days of heavy downpours that disrupted transport, flooded low-lying areas and affected normal life. However, the India meteorological department (IMD) has retained an Orange Alert for Mumbai, while several districts in Maharashtra remain under a red alert as heavy rain continues across the state.
As a precaution, all government, private and civic-run schools and colleges in Mumbai remained closed on Tuesday. Educational institutions were also shut in Thane, Palghar, Raigad, Ratnagiri, Navi Mumbai, Kalyan-Dombivli, Bhiwandi, Nashik and rural parts of Pune following persistent rainfall over the past three days.
The IMD has issued a red alert for the Nashik Ghat areas, Pune Ghat areas, Palghar and Raigad districts, forecasting extremely heavy rainfall. An orange alert remains in force for Mumbai, Thane, Ratnagiri, Nashik, the Satara Ghat areas, Akola and Amravati, with forecasts of heavy rain accompanied by gusty winds.
Although rainfall eased in Mumbai on Tuesday morning, dense cloud cover persisted and authorities advised residents to remain vigilant.
Record Rainfall Disrupts Mumbai
According to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), Mumbai witnessed cloudburst-like conditions over the past 48 hours.
Official data show the island city received around 300mm (millimetres) of rainfall, while the eastern suburbs recorded about 380mm and the western suburbs about 345mm during the period.
The heavy rain, accompanied by wind speeds of 70kmph-80kmph (kilometres per hour), uprooted trees, caused widespread waterlogging and disrupted transport across the city.
The Mithi River was flowing at full capacity and several low-lying areas remained inundated.
BMC has deployed high-capacity dewatering pumps, suction machines and additional personnel at flood-prone locations. Disaster management teams have also been kept on standby to respond to incidents involving fallen trees, electrical hazards and structural damage.
BMC has convened a special general body meeting on 9th July to review the city's monsoon preparedness and the civic response to recent rain-related incidents.
Rail Services Continue To Face Delays
Mumbai's suburban railway network continued to operate with delays.
Western Railway services were running 15 to 20 minutes behind schedule. Services between Vasai and Virar, which were severely affected on Monday, have resumed, although waterlogging on tracks continues to affect operations and several trains have been cancelled. There was no immediate update on services between Dahanu and Virar.
Central Railway suburban services were also delayed by 15 to 20 minutes, while Harbour Line services were running 10 to 15 minutes late.
Flight operations and road traffic also remained affected due to waterlogging and adverse weather.
Palghar among Worst-hit Districts
Palghar was among the worst-affected districts as cloudburst-like rainfall inundated Vasai-Virar, Saphale, Kelve, Palghar, Boisar, Manor and Wada, causing rivers and streams to overflow.
The Tansa River crossed the danger mark near Khanivde, flooding nearby villages and houses. The Vaitarna River also overflowed near Manor, submerging roads and entering residential areas.
Rail and road transport across the district remained severely affected.
Traffic on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad National Highway came to a standstill near Dhekale after mudslides and runoff from surrounding hills submerged sections of the highway.
Landslides in Ratnagiri and Pune
Heavy rainfall triggered multiple landslides across the state.
In Ratnagiri district, a landslide buried five houses in Dahivali village in Khed tehsil on Monday night. Police said several residents were trapped under the debris. A 75-year-old woman, Kalpana Shelar, was rescued safely, while rescue operations were continuing.
Pune district reported landslides at 22 locations over the past two days following exceptionally heavy rainfall.
Lonavala recorded 670mm of rainfall in the 24 hours ending at 7am on Monday. Nearly 600mm of rain in a day triggered multiple landslides in the Karjat-Lonavala Ghat section of the Mumbai-Pune railway corridor, disrupting train services.
Mumbai-Pune Expressway Reopens Partially
Traffic on the Mumbai-bound carriageway of the Mumbai-Pune Expressway's Missing Link bypass resumed late on Monday after remaining suspended for more than 18 hours following a landslide.
According to the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC), the carriageway reopened at about 10.10pm after safety inspections.
The landslide occurred near the exit of Tunnel 2, the longest tunnel on the Missing Link project through the Sahyadri range.
Government Issues Advisory
After reviewing the situation, Maharashtra chief minister (CM) Devendra Fadnavis warned of the possibility of a cloudburst in Nashik on Tuesday and appealed to citizens to follow official advisories.
The state government has urged private companies to allow employees to work from home wherever feasible. The CM said holidays had already been declared for non-essential services and warned that action would be taken against establishments compelling employees to report for work despite official weather warnings.
Authorities have advised residents across Maharashtra to avoid unnecessary travel, stay indoors during periods of intense rainfall and monitor official weather updates as the monsoon remains active across the state.
