The Hindu : Front Page : Rain batters Mumbai

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jul 27, 2005

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Rain batters Mumbai

Mumbai Bureau

MUMBAI: The commercial capital of India came to a standstill on Tuesday as non-stop rain resulted in the cancellation of suburban train services and massive flooding of roads. The airport was virtually closed, several flights were diverted and water entered the airport lounge. Phone lines stopped working and electricity went off in the suburbs.

Although the day began with strong winds and little rain, by mid-afternoon there were reports of flooding in the city as it rained non-stop. As several million office-goers and school and college students began their journey home, they found all ways virtually closed. The railway tracks had four to eight inches of water in some places and there was knee-deep water on many roads.

Jayesh Raje, a resident of Dombivli, said: "The tracks are under water and there is a line of trains waiting. People have been waiting for hours now. But the rain has not stopped."

"The current in the water on the road is so strong that people had to hold on to each other while walking. The water level is above the waist. Cars are almost floating. And the downpour won't stop. It is impossible to walk. Nothing is working. No phones, no electricity," said Shruti Rane, who walked for over two hours to reach home, of the situation in the suburbs of Andheri and Vile Parle. Like her, thousands of people chose to walk in the absence of any other means of transport.

Until late in the evening, both Western and Central Railways had suspended their suburban services.

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