Mumbai Drenched by More Rain as Highest Alert Issued for City

Mumbai is facing more heavy rain after a deluge that’s delayed flights, disrupted train services and closed schools, with India’s weather agency issuing its highest warning for the financial hub.

Intense rain spells and wind gusts as high as 65 kilometers (40 miles) per hour are expected to hit parts of Mumbai for several hours, according to an advisory from the India Meteorological Department on Tuesday. The weather bureau issued a red alert, and roads across the city have been flooded.

A weather station at Santacruz on the western side of Mumbai recorded 238.2 millimeters (9.4 inches) of precipitation in the 24 hours through 8.30 a.m. on Tuesday, according to the bureau. That’s the highest one-day volume for August since 2020, according to data from the agency.

Mumbai is highly vulnerable to flooding during the monsoon due to its coastal location, high population density, and strained urban infrastructure. Past downpours, such as the catastrophic floods in 2005 that killed more than 400 people, have shown how quickly the city’s transport, financial, and residential hubs can grind to a halt when rains overwhelm drainage systems.

IndiGo, the country’s largest airline, said in a post on X that heavy rains have led to “operational challenges, with delays in both departures and arrivals.” All schools and colleges in the city will remain closed, government department Brihanmumbai Municipal Corp. said on Wednesday.

India’s central bank, main stock exchanges and head offices of major lenders and corporates are located in Mumbai, including Reliance Industries Ltd. and Tata Group. The current monsoon season has been deadly across parts of Asia, with flash floods killing people across India and Pakistan. Southern China and Hong Kong have also been drenched repeatedly in August.