Heavy monsoon rains lash Mumbai
Heavy monsoon rains disrupted rail and air traffic in Bombay and floods snarled up roads on Tuesday, and weather officials said the heavy rains and winds were likely to continue for another 24 hours.
Flights at Bombay's domestic airport were delayed due to poor visibility and at least two Indian Airlines flights from Mangalore and New Delhi were diverted to Ahmedabad in the neighbouring Gujarat, a spokesman for the state carrier said.
"The airport's open and there are no official cancellations yet, but several flights have been delayed because of the heavy rain," a domestic airport spokeswoman said.
A railway spokesman said all train services to the suburbs had been suspended because tracks were flooded. Thousands of people were stranded at stations, while many returned to their offices, wading through knee-high water in some places.
"Trains are stranded on the flooded tracks," said Shailendra Kumar, spokesman for the Western Railway. "We don't know for sure how long will it take to resume normal services."
Central Railway services were also suspended.
Many offices closed early or allowed employees to return home early, but traffic on flooded roads was slow to move.
"There is a massive traffic jam and traffic's just inching along," said Sanjay Pillai, who was in a car on his way to the Hilton Towers hotel in south Bombay. "It took me 45 minutes just to get from Worli to Mahalakshmi, just a kilometre's distance."
Telephone lines and mobile networks were also struggling.
A weather official said the rains were due to a low pressure area over the Bay of Bengal.
"Heavy rains with strong winds are likely to continue in Maharahstra state in the next 24 hours," he said.
The Santacruz observatory of the Indian Meteorological Department recorded 2 cm of rainfall in the six hours from 0830 a.m. on Tuesday.
Heavy monsoon rains disrupted rail and air traffic in Bombay and floods snarled up roads on Tuesday, and weather officials said the heavy rains and winds were likely to continue for another 24 hours.
Flights at Bombay's domestic airport were delayed due to poor visibility and at least two Indian Airlines flights from Mangalore and New Delhi were diverted to Ahmedabad in the neighbouring Gujarat, a spokesman for the state carrier said.
"The airport's open and there are no official cancellations yet, but several flights have been delayed because of the heavy rain," a domestic airport spokeswoman said.
A railway spokesman said all train services to the suburbs had been suspended because tracks were flooded. Thousands of people were stranded at stations, while many returned to their offices, wading through knee-high water in some places.
"Trains are stranded on the flooded tracks," said Shailendra Kumar, spokesman for the Western Railway. "We don't know for sure how long will it take to resume normal services."
Central Railway services were also suspended.
Many offices closed early or allowed employees to return home early, but traffic on flooded roads was slow to move.
"There is a massive traffic jam and traffic's just inching along," said Sanjay Pillai, who was in a car on his way to the Hilton Towers hotel in south Bombay. "It took me 45 minutes just to get from Worli to Mahalakshmi, just a kilometre's distance."
Telephone lines and mobile networks were also struggling.
A weather official said the rains were due to a low pressure area over the Bay of Bengal.
"Heavy rains with strong winds are likely to continue in Maharahstra state in the next 24 hours," he said.
The Santacruz observatory of the Indian Meteorological Department recorded 2 cm of rainfall in the six hours from 0830 a.m. on Tuesday.