Heavy rains lash Thane and Mulund as season's fiercest spell triggers waterlogging
Heavy monsoon rains lashed Thane, Mumbai, and neighboring districts on Wednesday, marking the season's fiercest spell of rainfall and causing severe waterlogging, traffic disruptions, and train delays. The downpour, which aligned with an orange alert from the India Meteorological Department (IMD), saw nearby Mulund record the highest rainfall in the region at 166 mm by 9:00 pm.
The intense rainfall, which occurred between 8:30 am and 9:00 pm on Wednesday, prompted the IMD to issue two separate three-hour red alert warnings during the day. In addition to Thane, the heavy downpour severely impacted Palghar, Raigad, and various parts of Mumbai.
According to Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) data, the eastern suburbs bore the brunt of the wet spell. By 9:00 pm, Mulund recorded 166 mm of rain, followed closely by Bhandup with 155 mm, Powai with 152 mm, and Vikhroli with 152 mm. The IMD’s base observatory in Santacruz recorded 141 mm of rainfall, while Colaba registered 30 mm between 8:30 am and 5:30 pm.
The heavy downpour resulted in severe waterlogging across multiple key areas, including Mulund, Bhandup, Andheri, Vidyavihar, Wadala, and Matunga. Commuters were forced to wade through flooded streets, and train services faced delays.
In Andheri, the local subway had to be shut down after water levels accumulated to nearly five feet. To manage the massive traffic snarls and congestion, Joint Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Satyanarayan Chowdhary deployed more than 2,000 traffic personnel across key junctions. Officers were stationed at critical spots including Borivali, Andheri East, Sakinaka, Kings Circle, Dadar TT, Sion, Matunga, Kandivali, and the Malad subway.
The severe weather also caused structural damage and safety hazards. Over a two-day period, the BMC reported 135 incidents of fallen trees and branches in areas such as Kurla, Kandivali, Borivali, Malad, Dahisar, Goregaon, Chembur, and Marol. Additionally, seven short circuits were reported across the region.
Weather officials attributed the active monsoon conditions to three major meteorological factors: an offshore trough extending from south Gujarat to Karnataka, an upper air cyclonic circulation over the north Bay of Bengal, and a trough extending across eastern and central India.
The IMD has retained an orange alert for the region, warning that very heavy to extremely heavy rainfall is expected to continue.
