Heavy rains continue in Maha, Mumbai remains cut-off

Mumbai: Mumbai continued to remain cut-off by land, rail and air links with the rest of the country even as heavy rains continued to lash the commercial capital for the second consecutive day on Wednesday.

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The death toll due to landslides in the worst-affected Raigad and Ratnagiri districts in Konkan region of Maharashtra which remained inaccessible, crossed 60, official sources said. Thousands of office-goers began their day in the office, after being stranded at the workplace overnight as suburban trains and buses did not ply since Tuesday, as several areas of the city continued to be submerged.

Outbound long-distance trains were cancelled and incoming trains diverted, Railway sources said. Suburban Santacruz met office recorded a rainfall of 896 mm in the last 21 hours ending 5.30 am today while Colaba recorded a mere 57.1 mm rainfall during this period. Many suburban areas of the city also remained without power as water entered ground floor flats, forcing power supply to be shut off.

Even mobile and landline phone services were also affected. Flights into and out of Mumbai remained suspended due to heavy water logging of the runway and non-availability of landing aids.

Many international flight have been diverted to other destinations. Meanwhile, as many areas of Raigad and Ratnagiri districts continued to remain affected due to heavy rains and landslides. The state government sought assistance of the Navy, Army and Air Force for the relief and rescue operations, sources added.