Maharashtra: Raigad bears the brunt as cyclone Tauktae howls past Mumbai towards Gujarat

An uprooted tree landed on a car in Wadala, on Monday. Pic/Shadab Khan

Sheets of rain and high winds battered Mumbai as cyclone Tauktae grazed past coastal Maharashtra on Monday and barrelled towards Gujarat. Already slowed down by the Covid-19 pandemic, Mumbai life came to a grinding halt after gusts over 100 km per hour uprooted over 600 trees and damaged about 25 houses. Across the state, Tauktae left six people dead and nine injured, said a release from the Chief Minister's Office. Seven people were injured in the city, while three people are missing at sea, said authorities.

Huge waves hit the coast at Girgaum Chowpatty on Monday. Pic/Suresh Karkera

Cyclone Tauktae forced airport authorities to shut operations for the most part of the day and left its impact on local and BEST services as well.

Across Maharashtra, authorities shifted 12,500 people to safer places. Initial information said the cyclone affected some 2,500 structures of which six were completely destroyed. Thane, Raigad, Palghar, Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg, Pune, Kolhapur and Satara were among the worst affected districts, said the CMO, adding that though the situation was much less dangerous than earlier thought, rescue and relief measures were already put in place.

The government said it ensured uninterrupted power supply to Covid-19 centres.

Also Read: Cyclone Tauktae a wake-up call ahead of monsoon

Tree falls, waterlogging

In just six hours, the city received between 100mm and 120mm rainfall that inundated important roads and junctions from Hindmata at Parel to Yoginagar in Borivli. Vehicles and citizens on foot struggled to cross the flooded streets. Water entered civic-run Nair hospital. "The water hasn't affected any patient," said dean Dr Ramesh Bharmal.

A child enjoys the rainy and windy day in Kurla, oblivious to the terror triggered by Taukte. Pic/Sayyed Sameer Abedi

The BMC received 4,848 distress calls during the day.

As Tauktae headed for Gujarat as an "extremely severe cyclone", wind speed topped 114 km per hour in Mumbai. About 215 trees crashed, damaging cars and blocking roads in south Mumbai. In the western suburbs, 303 trees were uprooted, while 93 trees could not withstand the strong winds in the eastern suburbs.

Waterlogged streets prompted opposition corporators to accuse the Shiv Sena-ruled BMC of not getting nullahs cleaned diligently. Rais Shaikh of Samajwadi Party said, "It shows how Mumbai is prepared for the rain. Even after spending crores of rupees, the city faces waterlogging. Even the pumping stations failed to work properly." Rakhi Jadav of NCP claimed an under-construction bridge over Laxmi-Baug nullah collapsed, causing flooding.

This Kandivli man's umbrella is no match to the mighty winds brought in by Tauktae. Pic/Satej Shinde

Houses collapse

The civic body said 26 houses collapsed on Monday, including 15 on the southern side. Four people were injured in one such incident at Suman Nagar, Chembur. Two women got hurt after a crane collapsed at Saisrushti building, Kajupada, Borivali east.

Two missing, 1 feared dead

In two incidents, two persons are missing and another two are stranded on a boat in the sea. Officials said an anchored boat near Madh jetty burst due to the cyclonic storm. Of the five people on board, four were rescued, while the fifth person is feared dead.

Uprooted trees block a road at Shivaji Park. Pic/Ashish Raje

Several flights diverted

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport was forced to suspend its operations for nine hours on Monday, leading to many flights being diverted.

"In the wake of the alert, a few airlines have decided to cancel services to Mumbai," airport authorities said. It registered the cancellations of 34 arrivals and 22 departures. "Passengers are advised to connect with their respective airlines before leaving their homes. More updates will follow." One SpiceJet flight was diverted to Surat, an Indigo flight had to return back to Lucknow, and another Indigo flight was diverted to Hyderabad.

Flooded tracks, locals hit

As the cyclone passed over the city, its lifeline was affected in many parts due to trees getting uprooted and roof sheets flying away. Central Railway services were intermittently disrupted, even as Western Railway ones largely remained functional.

A man lugs his two-wheeler through the flooded Gandhi Market Road in Sion. Pic/Pradeep Dhivar

The day started with tree branches falling on overhead wires and a local train between Ghatkopar-Vikhroli section on Kalyan-bound slow line due to gusty winds. While slow line trains were diverted to the fast lane between Matunga-Mulund stations, the line was cleared after 11 am.

At Mumbai CSMT and Byculla stations, a few sheets from the roof were blown away, leaving gaping holes. The false ceiling at the passenger reservation centre of Kalyan station collapsed. Since it was lunchtime, no booking clerks were present there, said officials.

Following heavy rain and waterlogging near Masjid Bunder station, harbour line services were suspended between 1:20 pm to 2:40pm. Later, tree branches fell on the CSMT-bound harbour line track, damaging the overhead wires between Sewri and Cotton Green. The line was restored at 4:45pm.

On Western Railway, one fibre sheet fell on the tracks at Dahisar station, while another damaged overhead wire on the Dahanu-bound local line. A huge tree fell between Churchgate and Marine Lines, delaying services in the evening.

The low-lying Sion station bears the look of a rain-battered July/August day on Monday. Pic/Pradeep Dhivar

Monorail suspended operations on Monday.

Till 8pm, 109 buses were stranded due to waterlogging. Of these, 60 had been fixed at the time of going to print.

Helpless Mumbaikars

As the cyclone lashed the city at 120 km per hour, 479 trees fell on houses and parked vehicles. Many citizens lost their roof to strong winds, while fishermen's boats were damaged and one is even missing.

Citizens alleged that their calls to the BMC, the city police or the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) didn't yield any help. An SDRF official said, "It was impossible for us to reach all the spots at a time, as we don't have enough staff. We also did not have adequate manpower to chop off fallen trees. Moreover, we don't have sufficient hacksaws that are used for cutting trees."

Damaged boats at Madh Jetty

Senior inspector Zubeda Shaikh of Parksite police station said, "A huge tree fell on our police car and we called up the BMC for help. But the locals came before that and removed the fallen tree." At Madh Jetty and Khar Danda, around 25-30 anchored boats were damaged after they crashed into each other, said fishermen. Four fishermen also fell into the sea, but only three could be pulled out. One of them is still missing. Kiran Koli, president of the Maharashtra Machhimar Kruti Samiti, has demanded financial aid to the fishermen whose boats were damaged due to the cyclone.

Three-four houses in a chawl outside Marve Queen society in Malvani were completely damaged when a huge tree fell on it around 2 pm. Residents called up civic officials and police, but got no help till late night. BMC officials who visited the site told residents that they don't have enough hacksaws to chop off fallen trees.

A shattered roof of a house in Malvani

Riders were seen pushing their bikes on the Vashi bridge, as balancing the vehicle while riding got difficult due to the strong winds, a biker said.

120 MM
Amount of rain received by city in six hours

4,848
No. of distress called made to BMC

3
Missing in the sea

215
Trees uprooted in south Mumbai