IMD issues orange alert for Thane and Mumbai after heavy rains lash region

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has placed Thane, Mumbai, and Raigad under an orange alert until July 5, following heavy rainfall that exceeded 204mm over a 24-hour period. The weather department also sounded a short-term red alert for Mumbai and warned of heavy to extremely heavy rainfall on Wednesday, July 3.

The heavy downpour has affected several key localities across the metropolitan region. According to the IMD, Santacruz, which serves as the base weather station, recorded 204.6mm of rain, while Colaba received 158.2mm of rain during the 24-hour period.

The highest rainfall was recorded in the eastern suburbs, with Mulund leading at 218mm. The S-ward office followed closely with 212mm, while Powai recorded 208mm of rain.

Other areas in the region also witnessed intense rainfall. Juhu recorded 164.5mm, Vikhroli saw 163mm, Ram Mandir received 157mm, and Bandra registered 141.5mm. Additionally, Vidyavihar recorded 132mm, Sion received 115mm, Chembur saw 99.5mm, Colaba recorded 99mm, and Byculla received 97.5mm during the same 24-hour window.

A weather official explained that the intense rain is being driven by an upper air cyclonic circulation over the north Bay of Bengal and its neighbourhood. Under the influence of this system, a low-pressure area is likely to develop over the northwest Bay of Bengal and its neighbourhood around July 3.

Furthermore, a weather trough is currently running from the upper air cyclonic circulation over the north Bay of Bengal to the Northeast Arabian Sea. This trough stretches across south Gangetic West Bengal, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, north Maharashtra, and Gujarat, contributing to the wet spell.

The heavy rainfall has also brought a marginal increase to the water levels in the seven lakes that supply drinking water to Mumbai. The water storage in these catchment areas rose from 6.75% to 7.18% on Wednesday.