Rains, gusty winds lash parts of Mumbai; Metro, local train services hit

Mumbai: Rains and gusty winds lashed parts of Mumbai and neighbouring metropolitan areas on Monday, disrupting Metro and local train services. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) Mumbai has issued a "nowcast warning" forecasting a thunderstorm accompanied by lightning and moderate to intense spells of rain for Thane, Palghar and Mumbai. "Thunderstorm accompanied with lightning and light to moderate spells of rain with gusty winds reaching 40-50 kmph is very likely to occur at isolated places in Mumbai in the next 3-4 hours," an official of IMD said.

Metro services were suspended between Aarey and Andheri East metro stations after a banner landed on the overheard wire due to strong winds, a spokesperson from Metro Rail said. Suburban services on Central Railway were affected after an overhead equipment pole between Thane and Mulund stations got bent due to strong winds, an official said. The suburban services on the Main Line have been suspended, the chief spokesperson of Central Railway said. While the unseasonal showers brought some respite from the scorching heat, power outages were reported in Kalwa in Thane district and some other areas.

Apart from this, incidents of trees falling were also reported in some places. Rains coupled with gusty winds were witnessed in the suburbs of Dadar, Kurla, Mahim, Ghatkopar, Mulund and Vikhroli, while parts of south Mumbai saw drizzles. The satellite towns of Thane, Ambernath, Badlapur, Kalyan and Ulhasnagar also received moderate showers with gusty winds.