Mumbai rains: Flight, train services resume; city crawls back to normalcy

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Mumbai: People of Mumbai and adjoining region braced for another spell of heavy rains on Wednesday, a day after incessant downpour disrupted normal life in the megapolis, affecting all the three mode of traffic - rail, road and air.

Commuters stuck at various stations due to disruption of suburban train services were seen making their way home as the situation improved today. 

As per India Meteorological Department, the Santacruz observatory recorded 225.3 mm rain from 8.30 am to 11.30 pm last night. This quantity falls under the weather category of 'extremely heavy rain' (204.5 mm and above), an IMD official said.

The observatory recorded over 100 mm in just three hours (5.30-8.30pm), the official added. Mumbai recorded its second highest September rain in a span of 12 hours yesterday, BMC officials said.

Flights operations affected: 

Flight operations at the Mumbai airport remained affected for the second day following heavy rains that continue to lash the metropolis.

The skidding of a SpiceJet aircraft on the main runway (09/27) on Tuesday night compounded the problem further as it forced the private airport operator to shift operations to the secondary runway, which can carry out limited operations.

As many as 56 flights have been diverted to different airports till Wednesday morning as the main runway continues to be out of use due to the SpiceJet aircraft stuck there, an airport official said.

Following the downpour, several airlines issued travel advisories to the passengers.

#TravelAdvisory #6EUpdate Weather has improved, however, flights to/from Mumbai are still getting affected due last night weather," budget carrier IndiGo said in a tweet.

Partial operation is being carried out from the secondary runway (14/32 ) but due to the tailwinds, flight departures and arrivals are quite slow.

"Current visibility is 1600 mts with winds of 12 knots. RWY 14 is being used for arrivals while RWY 32 is being used for departures. The disabled aircraft recovery kit from Air India is at site and preparation of pavement underneath the aircraft is in progress," a Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) spokesperson said.

The SpiceJet aircraft is still stuck on the runway and efforts are on to tow it away to a bay, an official said.

Mumbai Dabbawalas take a day off: 

In view of the disruption of suburban rail services after heavy rains, the 'dabbawalas' of Mumbai cancelled their delivery of over two lakh tiffins to office-goers today.

The tiffin delivery men use suburban trains to ensure the lunch boxes reach their destination on time.

The three railway lines - Western, Central and Harbour - that link 70 stations, ensure that lunch boxes travel from the farthest northern suburbs to business areas on the southern tip of the city within a maximum of two hours, Talekar said.

Earlier on August 9, the tiffin delivery men, most of who come from villages around Pune, had taken a day off to join the Maratha reservation rally here and to express solidarity with the movement for demanding reservation to Maratha community in jobs and education.

Mumbai fishermen warned:

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a warning to Mumbai fishermen against venturing into the deep sea. 

Flight operations at the Mumbai airport were affected due to heavy rains and low visibility.

Schools and colleges to remain closed: 

All schools and colleges in Mumbai Metropolitan Region have been instructed to remain closed today in the backdrop of heavy rains.

"Schools are instructed to remain closed tomorrow for safety due to mixed predictions. This holiday will be compensated in Diwali," Maharashtra education minister Vinod Tawde said.

On Tuesday, heavy rains coupled with thunder and lightning lashed the metropolis slowing down movement of vehicular traffic and suburban trains, and bringing back memories of torrential downpour late last month when the financial capital came to a standstill.

Flight operations at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) here were affected due to low visibility in the evening, and seven flights were diverted.

(With Agency inputs)