The civic administration has declared a holiday for all government, private and civic schools and colleges in Mumbai on Monday in view of the ‘orange alert’ for heavy rains, officials said.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said in a statement on Sunday evening that the decision was taken keeping in mind the safety of students.
The India Meteorological Department issued an orange alert for the city, predicting heavy rain and gusty winds.
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The statement said that government and private offices will operate as usual, and urged citizens not to leave their homes except when necessary.
Mumbai and its surrounding areas have witnessed extremely heavy rains over the past few days, leading to water-logged streets and tree-tumbling accidents, killing three people, including a schoolboy, since June 30.
Mumbai, Thane monsoon updates
A 17-year-old boy drowned in a river while two people were injured after part of a balcony collapsed due to heavy rains that wreaked havoc in Thane and Palghar districts of Maharashtra on Sunday, officials said.
The continuous rains caused a series of structural collapses and tree fall accidents in the areas.
In Navi Mumbai’s Vashi area, a concrete slab collapsed from a second-floor balcony of the Ram Niwas building, and the falling debris injured a man and a woman.
“The injured woman was shifted to a nearby private hospital, while the injured man was shifted to NMMC Hospital in Vashi for treatment,” an official said, adding that firefighters removed the unstable remains of the structure.
A 17-year-old boy drowned in the flowing Kamvari river in Bhiwandi town in the evening.
The boy, a resident of Jaypee Nagar, had gone to the riverbank with his friends to catch crabs when he was swept away by strong currents, a civic official said, adding that efforts were on to trace his body.
In Thane, officials said emergency services rescued five people trapped in a two-storey building in the Diva area in the afternoon after a concrete slab collapsed from the stairs, blocking the main exit.
Fire brigade personnel rescued the residents – Pradeep Malusare (50), Prajakta Malusare (42), Chetan Malusare (21), Ganesh Rane (48) and 14-year-old Aarushi Kumdekar – and subsequently cleared the remaining dangerous debris.
Earlier in the day, a large tree collapsed on two houses in Yashoda Niwas community in Pachpakhadi, Thane West, damaging the roof, officials said.
Yasin Tadvi, head of the Regional Disaster Management Cell (RDMC), said, “Work is underway to cut and remove the tree. No one was injured at the scene.”
An eyewitness said that a civilian worker miraculously survived when the tree collapsed.
Incessant rainfall in neighboring Palghar district led to the collapse of a wall in Vasai, officials said.
The wall of an apartment complex under construction collapsed in the afternoon, crashing into a neighboring residential design, crushing 15 motorcycles parked along the perimeter.
Firefighters from Vasai-Virar Municipal Corporation (VVMC) immediately rushed to the spot to remove the debris, they added.
(With inputs from PTI)