Rain in Mumbai: Metropolis on alert! Schools and colleges remain closed; IndiGo, Vistara and Air India flights are diverted

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a red alert for Mumbai, predicting heavy rainfall across the metropolis on Thursday. The red alert came after Mumbai was hit by heavy rains on Wednesday, inundating low-lying areas and bringing local trains to a standstill.

Train services were disrupted in Ghatkopar, Kanjurmarg, Vikhroli and between Vidyavihar and Mulund. Following this, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) announced that schools and colleges will remain closed on Thursday.

City officials also urged residents to only leave their homes if absolutely necessary.

Some roads were submerged in water as several areas received more than 100 mm of rain within 5 hours in the evening. Traffic jams were seen on Lal Bahadur Shastri (LBS) Marg in Kurla and Ghatkopar, especially near Kalina Air India Road, Kalpana Cinema, Kurla Depot and Phoenix Mall Road and Sahara Hotel.

According to BMC data, the island city and its eastern and western suburbs received 87.79 mm, 167.48 mm and 95.57 mm of rainfall between 5 pm and 10 pm. Mankhurd in the eastern suburbs received the most rainfall at 276 mm, followed by 275 mm in Bhandup and 274 mm in Powai.

On Wednesday, several areas of Mumbai recorded more than 100 mm of rainfall. The worst-affected regions include Govandi (167 mm), Chembur (162 mm), Powai (145 mm), Bhandup (120 mm) and Veena Nagar in Mulund (104 mm).

Sewri Koliwada and Wadala areas in the island city recorded the highest rainfall of over 145 mm, while the western suburbs recorded the highest rainfall of 190 mm.

Not only rail and road traffic, but also flight operations to and from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport were affected by the heavy rain. A total of 14 flights were diverted – 9 from IndiGo, 2 from Vistara, 1 each from Air India, Akasa Air and Gulf Air.

Flights were diverted to Hyderabad (7), Ahmedabad (4), Goa (2) and Udaipur (1).

“As heavy rains continue to lash Mumbai, we understand that many of you are facing inconveniences due to flight delays/diversions and heavy flooding while making your way to the terminals. If you or your loved ones are travelling, please keep a close eye on the status of your flight. We remain hopeful for clear skies and that our operations will return to normal soon. We thank you for your patience and understanding during this time,” IndiGo said in a post on X.

Furthermore, IMD scientist Sushma Nair told news agency PTI that a low pressure trough is running from north Konkan to south Bangladesh over a cyclonic circulation over south Chhattisgarh and surrounding areas, extending up to the mid-troposphere and trending southward with height.

“This will result in fairly widespread to widespread light/moderate rainfall over Konkan and Goa during the week,” she said.