Mumbai rains live: Services on railways' Harbour line restored partially

5:20 pm: Services resume on the Harbour Line  Some relief at last for commuters who use the Harbour Line of Central Railways. The water levels on the tracks has reportedly fallen enough to allow trains to begin functioning again. The services are, expectedly, very late. However, they are finally operational for now. 3.15 pm: Services on Harbour line suspended due to water-logging Train services on the Harbour line  have been suspended due to waterlogging near Kurla, reports said.

  12.30 pm: MeT department warning a damp squib? After continuous rains since early this morning, the weather in most parts of south central Mumbai and Thane seems to have cleared up. There has been no rain since around 11.00 am and the water-logged areas in the city are beginning to clear up. The MeT department had on Tuesday issued an advisory stating that the city would experience heavy to very heavy rainfall for the next 72 hours and  asked people not to step out unless absolutely necessary. 10.52 pm: South Central Mumbai largely traffic free, Mulund not so lucky Despite tweets saying that the Elphinstone bridge is shut, the Mumbai traffic control room has told Firstpost that it is functional. Also, we’re getting some Twitter updates saying that some roads at least in South central Mumbai are empty:

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No such luck for Mulund and Thane though! Heavy traffic jams are reported between Airoli - Mulund-Thane, because the Bhiwandi bypass road has been shut due to cracks on tge road. All traffic has been diverted via Airoli - Mulund. Most of the private schools in the city and suburbs as well as the adjoining Thane have declared a holiday due to the heavy rain. All municipal schools have officially been declared closed. 10.23 am: Mere Met dept warnings can’t keep Mumbaikars home Rains are lessening across Mumbai, but is this the proverbial calm before the storm? The rain has lessened and stopped across many areas, but one should not discount the Met department warnings completely. The Meteorological Department on Tuesday warned that heavy to very heavy rains will hit Mumbai and coastal Konkan over the next 72 hours. And to add to it, the high tide is expected to touch 5 metres on Saturday which could lead to flooding. IMD Mumbai Director VK Rajeev said that all the entire state of Maharashtra is expected to get heavy to very heavy rainfall in the next 12-72 hours due to a low-pressure area advancing from the Bay of Bengal and the high-pressure area forming on the west coast. All agencies concerned with disaster management, relief and rescue operations have been put on high alert and people have been warned against venturing outdoors unless absolutely necessary. But boss, this is Mumbai:

10.00 am: ‘Only Namo can save us from these rains’ Unable to bear the Mumbai rains, a Twitter user is contemplating converting to a Namo fan. At least that’s what he said:

  9.45 am: Dadar West clear, traffic jam along Elphinstone-Parel bridge 9.35 am: These are some of the good roads, hit them! Traffline Mumbai reports that there is no traffic disruption along JVLR, Tulsi Pipe road, Link Road and Marine Drive among others.

9.23 am: Trains running late, but hey they’re still running This update will really come as no surprise, but yes, trains are running late in Mumbai. Trains are running at least half an hour late on all three lines. As of now, the Harbour line is still working, so that’s good news. Remember the line was halted briefly last evening due to heavy rains.  And if you have decided to set out despite the BMC warning, here’s a good piece of advice!  9.10 am: Help another Mumbaikar, tweet about the rains Twitter is abuzz with updates on the status of traffic in the city. Trending hashtags are #Mumbairains #MumbaiRoads and #MumbaiTrains. If you’re travelling, do use these hashtags and tweet the latest from where you are.

   9.00 am: Traffic on Dr E Moses road affected after tree falls A tree along the Dr E Moses road was uprooted and traffic towards Mahlaxmi and Worli has been affected.

  8.45 am: Action will be taken against those spreading false messages The BMC has denied issuing any red alert message that went viral on Tuesday and created panic across the city. BMC officials  warned that action will be taken under the National Disaster Management Act and the cyber cell of the Mumbai Police against those spreading such rumours. Many received messages that read: “Red alert by weather forecast Mumbai is about to face the highest rainfall ever in next 48 hours.. - Mumbai police and BMC.” 8.00 am: Avoid stepping out unless absolutely necessary, says IMD Authorities have asked people not to step out of their house unless absolutely necessary, as the city braces for heavy to very heavy rains in the next 72 hours. “Heavy to very heavy rainfall will occur at many places in Konkan, central Maharashtra and Marathwada. Similarly, Mumbai will experience heavy to very heavy rains in the next 72 hours,” IMD Mumbai director VK Rajeev said. [caption id=“attachment_981213” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Train services were delayed by at least 20 minutes on Tuesday. PTI[/caption] Tuesday saw many parts of the city water-logged, disrupting traffic and forcing people to travel by foot. With railway tracks submerged, trains running on the western and central lines were delayed by at least 20 minutes while the harbour line was shut, before reopening after evening peak hours. Authorities have also warned against those spreading rumours of a high alert through SMS and said action will be taken under the National Disaster Management Act. If you need any disaster related help, contact the BMC disaster management cell at 108; and for complaints contact 1916.