NEW DELHI: Heavy rains in Mumbai on Monday disrupted air and road travel, forcing nine flights to abort landing and perform a ‘go-around’, while one flight was diverted due to poor visibility and weather conditions. Airlines issued travel advisories, asking passengers to allow extra time to reach the airport.
Passengers were advised to check their flight status with respective airlines and allow extra travel time to reach airports.
Poll
Do you think the airlines are handling the heavy rain situation effectively?
In a post on ‘X’, IndiGo said, “The rain continues to make its presence felt across Mumbai, and road travel has been affected in parts. Traffic is moving slowly on some routes to the airport due to persistent showers and pooling water. If you are catching a flight today, we recommend heading out early and keeping an eye on your flight updates via our app and website. Our airport teams are standing by and ready to help you along the way.“Akasa Air issues advisory “Due to heavy rainfall in certain parts of Mumbai, Bengaluru, Goa, and Pune, we anticipate slow moving traffic and congestion on roads leading to the airport. To ensure a seamless travel experience, we request you to plan for additional travel time to reach the airport well in time for your flight. Please check your flight status here: http://bit.ly/qpfltsts. We realise that this may inconvenience your travel plans and seek your understanding.”Mumbai rain havocThe downpour also left several roads waterlogged.Traffic moved painfully slow on the Western Express Highway near Vile Parle, while areas such as Andheri Subway and Lokhandwala Complex saw heavy flooding.The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange alert for Mumbai and Thane until August 19, warning of “heavy to very heavy rain” in isolated places. In the 24 hours ending 8.30am Monday, Santacruz recorded 85 mm of rainfall and Colaba 55 mm. Suburban pockets were hit harder: Dahisar logged 188 mm, Kandivli 150 mm, and Cotton Green 145 mm.
Public transport services were also impacted. Harbour line trains were delayed by 15–20 minutes, while BEST buses largely managed to continue on schedule. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) declared a half-day holiday for schools and colleges from 12 noon as a precautionary measure.