Mumbai Weather: 5 Dead, Mumbai Told To Stay Home In More Heavy Rain

Mumbai weather: Heavy rains battered Mumbai, disrupting traffic all over the city.

Highlights

Severe rain in Mumbai, at least 10 times higher than normal
More rain expected today, water-logging in many parts
Schools will be closed today, people asked to stay home

Mumbai: The weather office has sounded a "red alert" for heavy rain today in Mumbai, which reported nearly 300 mm of rain in some parts of the city on Tuesday - at least 10 times more than normal. Five people were killed in Mumbai and Thane in incidents blamed on the incessant downpour. Schools and colleges will be closed today. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis tweeted to say that people in and around Mumbai are "advised to stay back home unless there is an emergency" but "essential services" will be up. Flights and trains were delayed. There is waist-high water at many places and traffic was choked all over the city. "Stay Safe," Prime Minister Narendra Modi has urged Mumbai in a tweet.

Here are the 10 developments in the story:

The met office has said that while Mumbai is likely to see less intense rain today, with the storm moving away, they expect heavy rain for at least 24 hours more. Tuesday's rain was the heaviest since July 2005, when floods paralysed the city.
Three people, including two children, were killed when a house collapsed in Mumbai, news agency PTI said. In neighbouring Thane, a 32-year-old woman and a teenage girl died and two others were injured in rain-related incidents.
With tracks flooded in several areas, local trains were running late or stopped entirely in some places. Many commuters were stranded at stations. The railways said it would run trains through the night if needed to evacuate all passengers. At the Mumbai airport, at least 10 flights were cancelled and several others were diverted or delayed.
Thousands waded yesterday through waist-deep water. People abandoned cars to walk, with the police encouraging them to do so wherever the water was tyre-high. With high tide in the evening, the police also urged people to avoid beaches and promenades.
Traffic on the iconic Bandra-Worli Sea Link was stopped for several hours to clear gridlocks before being allowed again in the evening. By 10, traffic was moving normally in several locations, the police tweeted.
The state government asked offices to allow employees to leave early. if rains persist, government employees should stay home today, state chief secretary Sumit Mallick said. Stock markets including the BSE and NSE said they will remain open.
There were reports of flooding at the city's King Edward Memorial hospital and heavy water-logging in areas like Dadar, Byculla, Matunga, Wadala and Parel. Power outages were reported in several parts of the city.
Teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are on alert. The Navy, which has kept divers and choppers on standby to rescue people, said it was also arranging shelters for stuck in areas like Colaba, Worli and Ghatkopar.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minster Rajnath Singh tweeted that they have spoken to Mr Fadnavis and assured him of all help from the centre. Social media also was abuzz with people offering help to strangers who were stranded.
The rains on Tuesday were about a third of July 26, 2005 when the city received as much as 900 mm rainfall in some areas triggering floods that killed hundreds of people.