Take cover, Mumbai

Borivali, Kandivali, Andheri, Santacruz, Khar, Bandra, Matunga, Parel, Dadar, Kings Circle, Sion, Vikhroli, Ghatkopar, Kurla, Bhandup and Mulund were waterlogged on Saturday due to incessant rains. Mumbai and suburban district collectors declared holiday for schools and colleges, and those living around the Mithi River were evacuated and moved to a relief camp at Kranti Nagar.

BMC issued a rainy day holiday for schools under its jurisdiction on Saturday. "We didn't want to risk any child's lives. Thus, we informed parents even before the official notification," said the principal of a Mulund-based school. The Thane Municipal Corporation also declared an emergency holiday in all its schools, as did the Palghar Collector.

Many parents did not wait for notification from schools, colleges and classes. "It's okay if my daughters miss a class or two. After hearing all the horror stories on TV, I don't let them go far on such days. We collectively decided on our parents' WhatsApp group to not send our children to school today," said Rama Chavan, a homemaker from Kalyan.

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) and Maharashtra Disaster Management Control Room have issued a red alert for the city.

Adjoining areas of Navi Mumbai, Thane, Palghar, Raigad, Nasik, Pune and Satara districts for Sunday and Monday are also at risk. "Citizens should avoid venturing around sea also at water-logged areas," the BMC said in a statement.

The intensity of rainfall is likely to increase over Konkan and adjoining ghat areas of central Maharashtra over the next 48 hours due to the strengthening of monsoon currents and likelihood of formation of low pressure areas over the northeast portion of Bay of Bengal.

Fishermen have been asked not to venture into the sea as strong winds with speeds ranging from 45 to 65 kmph are likely to prevail along the coast over the next three days.

State disaster management, relief and department requested the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) to keep all teams on standby to respond to emergencies.

On land, rail services were disrupted due to water-logging on Saturday. "We had to curtail train operations as the water-level surpassed danger levels. The high tide of 4.90 meters worsened the situation as the water could not flow out," said a Central Railway official. With many trains stranded for hours, the authorities ran services in patches, as and when available, and there were numerous cancellations. This led to congestion and crowding on platforms of railway stations, especially in the peak hours.

"Services between Vashi-Panvel, CSMT-Bandra/ Goregaon on Harbour line; Thane-Kalyan/Karjat/Kasara/Khopoli on Main line, and the Thane-Vashi Transharbour line, plus Belapur/Nerul-Kharkopar sections, were running, albeit with delays," said a CR official on condition of anonymity.

A small collapse at Chembur halted operations for a while. "Neither the bridge nor the slab of the ROB fell down between Tilak Nagar and Chembur stations, just a portion of the flower bed of the divider," clarified Sunil Udasi, Chief PRO of CR, "The debris was cleared and road traffic has been suspended."

Train services slowly resumed in the evening as special trains ran from CSMT, Dadar, Kalyan, Thane and Vadala.

Rail

CR hiccuped through the day, and the most affected routes were Kurla-Sion, Kurla-Chunabhatti, Vadala-Vashi, Dadar-Kurla and CSMT-Dadar. Service halted between Tilak Nagar and Chembur after debris from an RoB fell on the tracks and broke overhead cables. On WR, a tree branch fell on the OHE cable between Grant Rd and Charni Rd, resulting shutdown of nearly 15 minutes. There was point failure at Goregaon stn.

Road

BEST diverted nearly 85 bus routes due to water-logging at 23 locations, and ran 25 special buses from CSMT, Dadar, Kurla towards Mulund, Vashi to ferry the stranded. “Around 33-35% of our fleet was not the road as many cabbies live in Thane, Kalyan, Vasai, Nalasopara, Virar, etc,” said Al Quadros, the taxi union leader. Similarly, auto-rickshaws were also scarce. Flights were delayed by 20 minutes.

Casualties

The satellite city of Navi Mumbai witnessed many casualties: Three students drowned and one is after they went picnicing at Pandavkada waterfall in the Kharghar. The teenagers were students of SIES college in Nerul. Another student was washed away in a canal. A person was electrocuted in Thane district, while another was seriously injured after the roof of a bakery in Mumbra caved in.

Some Sunshine

The BMC set up relief camps for stranded passengers at CSMT, Dadar and Kurla stations, and served water, tea and snacks. BMC has issued a ‘beach safety appeal’ to citizens and started an emergency helpline number: 1916. “We request Mumbaikars to please stay away from the sea & venture out with care & caution,” the police tweeted.  The city’s water stock has increased above 90%: As of 6 am on Saturday, there was 91.53% water in the seven lakes that supply water to the city, as opposed to the 83.50%, this time, last year. Modak Sagar, Vihar, Tansa and Tulsi lakes have overflowed.

Mithi Overflows

BMC evacuated 100 to 150 people from Kranti Nagar, situated near the Mithi river as it overflowed. “The water level crossed the 3.6 metre mark, considered dangerous; at 4 metres, the water flows on to the streets. This also caused flooded the tracks at Kurla station,” said Manish Valanju, Assistant Municipal Commissioner, L ward. Dahisar River also overflowed on Saturday morning.