Mumbai Records Nearly 300 mm Rain In 2 Days, Water-Logging In Many Areas

Heavy rainfall drenched Mumbai and nearby areas in Maharashtra for three days straight, leading to water-logging in low-lying areas and traffic disruptions. About 298 mm of rainfall was recorded in the last 48 hours in Mumbai while the suburbs recorded 357 mm of rain.

Extremely heavy rainfall and water-logging have added to the concerns of the city already grappling with a high number of coronavirus cases.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) had issued a red alert for rainfall in Mumbai and nearby areas for Friday and Saturday. However, the alert level was brought down to 'yellow' for today. The weather department said it expects the rainfall intensity to reduce gradually in the coming days.

The department has forecast intermittent rains in the city and suburbs "with the possibility of heavy falls" at isolated places for today.

Since June, Mumbai has received 915 mm of rainfall while the suburbs received 780 mm of rainfall.

Heavy rainfall inundated some low-lying areas of the city, including Hindmata in Central Mumbai, and Chembur in eastern suburbs, adding to Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) work in the area.

"The BMC (workers) used to come to pick up the garbage and now since the last two days, nobody has come in. We are facing a lot of difficulty," a Mumbai resident said.

High tides hit the coast in Mumbai's Colaba this morning, leading the officials to issue a warning, requesting people to stay away from the seashore.

The heavy showers have led to water logging at several places across the city. We request Mumbaikars to stay updated through official sources and plan moving out likewise. Please stay away from the shore (High Tide at 12.23 PM) and water logged areas #MonsoonSafetyMumbai pic.twitter.com/UlijJlYLN1

— Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) July 5, 2020

A large number of people from the Koli fishing community in Mumbai, living in low-lying areas, have sought help from the local administration after the intense spell of rainfall.

Due to the lockdown amid coronavirus outbreak, the BMC could only carry out 40% of the pre-monsoon work this year. However, officials say, the monsoon has not yet impacted the fight against the pandemic. Mumbai has recorded over 82,000 COVID-19 cases till now while the number of cases in Maharashtra crossed the two lakh-mark -- the highest in the country.