NEW DELHI – Torrential monsoon rain for the last 24 hours has brought Mumbai, India's second largest city, to a grinding stop. It received 375 millimeters (nearly 15 inches) of rain, the highest for 14 years, according to India's Meteorological Department. Very heavy rainfall is expected for another day, according to the forecast before it is due.
Water in some streets rose to the waist level, and the low lying areas of the suburbs were hardest hit.
A man sails through a water-logged street after heavy rains in Mumbai on Tuesday. (Rajanish Kakade / AP)
Several residents took on Twitter to share dramatic pictures of their flooded homes.
Several trains, known as the city's lifelines, remained suspended as water logging smothered the tracks. More than 2,500 people were stranded at one of the major stations due to remote train cancellations, Indian Express reported.
Air traffic was also paralyzed after an aircraft worn out of the main railway and forced its closure at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport. The authorities said it could take up to two days for the court to reopen. While another runway operates, over 50 flights were canceled and a corresponding number derived.
In 2005, more than 500 people died in large floods caused by record falls.
Source link
