31 August 2017 01:01 pm
At least five people were killed as heavy monsoon rain deluged India’s financial capital Mumbai, causing transport chaos and forcing schools and many offices to close on Wednesday. The coastal city of more than 20 million people is the latest to be hit by floods that have ravaged South Asia this monsoon season, affecting millions of people across India, Nepal and Bangladesh and killing over 1,200. Authorities in Mumbai said at least five people had died since the intense rainfall began on Tuesday, making roads impassable and briefly shutting the suburban rail network on which millions of commuters depend.
“Five people have died in the Mumbai floods. Four of them including two children died due to wall collapse in the slums and another person died due to electric shock,” Tanaji Kamble, a local government official, told AFP. Kamble said the rains had eased by Wednesday. “We are monitoring the safety situation across the city and things are returning to normal.” Cars were submerged and commuters waded through waist-deep water on Tuesday evening.
MUMBAI AFP
Aug30, 2017