Ahmedabad: Sound, Lightning & Action

Amdavadis abruptly awoke to generous claps of thunder resonating through their homes on Wednesday, almost as if to applaud the splendid slumber they enjoyed the previous night. This sound and light show, a result of upper air cyclonic circulation, was soon accompanied by heavy showers across the city. Many commuters drove out to waterlogged streets in the morning and drains had to be opened relatively early in the day to disperse the water accumulated over a short span of time.

Areas including Maninagar, Bapunagar, Rakhial, Gomtipur, Viratnagar, Saraspur, Khokra, Naroda, Isanpur, Ghodasar, Usmanpura and Paldi among others were caught smack in the middle of this downpour. The clouds weighed heaviest over AMC’s south, north, and central zones during the day, breaking the monopoly so far enjoyed by the west and new west zones. However, it was the east zone that experienced highest rainfall during the day.

The east zone witnessed 60.66 mm rainfall in a 24-hour period ending at 4 pm on Wednesday, followed by the south zone at 56.34 mm. The west and new west zones have so far recorded 631.19 mm and 508.30 mm of rainfall this monsoon, higher than this season’s average of 478.25 mm across the city.

Meanwhile, many areas were waterlogged in a matter of minutes due to the heavy downpour. Vejalpur, Jivrajpark, Hatkeshwar Circle, Vorana Roja in Saraspur among others witnessed accumulation of more than knee-deep water.
The rain water even made its way into the cellar of Odhav Fire Station and LG Hospital’s physiotherapy and mental health department.

While some Amdavadis enjoyed the rain by unwinding at home, others had to rush to offices braving waterlogged streets.

“I woke up to a dark morning, the likes of which I had never seen before. Despite such heavy rains I drove to office, only to find our boss had declared an off-day for the entire staff. Since it was a bad day to go shopping or to the movies, I preferred to stay at home, relax and watch my favourite movies,” said Shikha Shah, who works at an accountancy firm in the city.

Even residents of localities such as Bodakdev had to bear the brunt of waterlogging. “A lot of time was spent getting to work. While it usually takes me 10-12 minutes to reach my office, it took 25 minutes on Wednesday due to the water accumulated outside my society and along the route,” said 26-year-old Ridhima Bhargava, an architect whose office is at Prahladnagar.

On the other hand, Ila Gohel, office superintendent of an educational institute, said that the weather was perfect to go for a long drive. “However, it was scary for senior citizens and children due to the constant thunder and lightning. Due to the extreme weather conditions, I picked up my kids from school early. They were hooting every time they heard the lightning,” she said.

Some Amdavadis, such as Vikrant Jain, were reminiscing childhood memories and grandma’s folktales. As a kid, he used to believe that the thunder and lightning was the sound of monsters and deities were engaged in battle.