Mumbai: Rains lash city, hit trains, flights

Heavy showers brought fast-paced Mumbai to a grinding halt on Monday evening, throwing local train services off kilter and disrupting flight operations at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport.

Downpours with lightning and thunder hit western and eastern suburbs. Few trains were halted at Bandra for nearly 20 minutes due to multiple sparks in overhead wires. With poor visibility at the airport, a United Air (Newark-Mumbai) flight was diverted to New Delhi, said officials.

As people scrambled for taxis, rates for ride-hailing services like Ola and Uber skyrocketed in no time.

The pre-monsoon showers, however, brought respite from the sultry climate that had gripped the city for the past two to three days.

With a deep depression in the Arabian Sea developing into a severe cyclonic storm and causing heavy rainfall in the coastal areas of Gujarat, it is expected that the weather phenomenon will leave its marks on Mumbai as well.