Bengaluru rains: Three killed as thunderstorm brings city to a standstill

Bengaluru: Three members of a family were killed after a huge tree fell on their car when heavy rains with thunderstorm pummelled Bengaluru, bringing the city to its knees on Friday.

The police said a 38-year-old woman, her husband and her brother were the victims. A number of trees were uprooted and water gushed into houses in many low-lying areas as the city experienced a heavy downpour.

Traffic was thrown out of gear as uprooted trees blocked the roads and many important roads were waterlogged, compelling motorists to wade through it.

Areas such as Banashankari, Richmond Road, Gali Anjaneya Temple, Vijayanagar, Majestic, Shanthinagar, BTM Layout, Madivala and Sarjapura Road were badly affected due to the torrential rains.

Many vehicles in the basements of low-lying areas were almost submerged. Earlier in the afternoon too, the city had witnessed heavy rains.

Sajjanraj Mehta, a resident of Hanumanthanagar told PTI that a huge tree fell on the main gate of his house damaging the gate as well as an electric pole.

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike was flooded with complaints about uprooting of trees, floods and power disruption.

The meteorology department recorded 62.4 mm rain by 8.30 pm. Meteorology officials said cyclonic circulation above the Bay of Bengal adjoining Andhra Pradesh and a trough from Chhattisgarh to Tamil Nadu caused theavy rains.

There would be heavy rains in the next 48 hours, they said.