Mumbai deluge kills 9; overall Maha death toll at 46

The state government has announced a compensation of Rs one lakh each for the deceased,Rs 50,000 each for seriously injured and Rs 25,000 each to those who sustained minor injuries,he said.

Heavy rains and strong winds lashed Mumbai on Tuesday and Wednesday,hitting flight schedules and more.

The city received 60.77 mm rainfall since yesterday. Colaba in south Mumbai received 78.6 mm and suburban Santacruz received 95.0 mm,the MET department said.

Airline sources said there was an average delay of one-and-a-half to two hours in flight operations due to heavy rains.

However,the Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) spokesperson said,”There is an average delay of half-an-hour to 40 minutes across flights.”

Separate reports state that flights arriving in the city are running 45 minutes behind schedule. Departing flights are an hour late. Fluctuating visibility is contributing to the delays.

Suburban trains have also been delayed by 10 to 15 minutes.

Traffic came to a halt as the roads got flooded leading to a huge pile up of cars and buses.

Water logging has been reported from Parel,Dadar,Andheri and Hindmata.

There has been flooding at Milan subway in Santa Cruz as well. Colaba area has recorded 81.4 mm of rainfall while Santa Cuz has received 59.8 mm of rains.

The Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) had on Tuesday people not to venture into the sea,as the city would witness high tides measuring about 4.70 metres till June 17.

Meanwhile,the BMC has decided to implement a two-tier safety and security system at the city”s seafront.

The corporation will use services of 150 firefighters,while adding to its team of lifeguards at the seafront.

The BMC has today alerted a high tide of 4.70 metres at 1521 hours.

“Any tide above 4.5 metres is coupled with heavy rains and is a matter of concern,” Joint Municipal Commissioner S S Shinde said.

Another tide of 4.07 metres is expected at 1421 hours,the civic body said.

“We appeal to Mumbaikars not to venture into the sea and stay away from the coastline area as a high tide has been predicted today,” Shinde said.

The civic body had earlier said that the city would witness high tides measuring about 4.70 metres till June 17.

In the month of June,there will be tides from June 13 to 17 measuring between 4.58 m to 4.73 m,the BMC had said.

On July 26,2005,the metropolis saw unprecedented floods as 944 mm of rainfall coincided with a 4.48 m tide.

Eight killed in wall collapse at Thane

Eight persons were killed and four injured in a wall collapse,reportedly caused by incessant rains,in Thane district this morning,police said.

The boundary wall of Birla company fell on the slums at Dnyaneshwar Nagar at 0500 hours,they said.

Fire brigade sources rushed to the spot,police said adding the victims were removed from the debris and are rushed to a nearby hospital.

Four persons,who were injured in the mishap were admitted to Kaushila hospital in Thane district. They were identified as Seema Bhagat (35),her son Rohit (10),husband Dudhnath (36) and Sunny Thakur (8),hospital sources said.

While Dudhnath has been admitted to ICU with serious injuries,the other three sustained minor injuries and have been admitted in the general ward,they said.

Seema,whose slum is next to the wall that collapsed,said she was sleeping when the mishap took place.

The Bhagat family had returned from their native place in Uttar Pradesh only two days ago.

Seema’s husband Dudhnath works in a nearby factory.