Mumbai: In the past 24 hours, the city has received its heaviest downpour in a decade (375.2 mm), according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). Naturally, this does not include the figures for the 2005 flooding of Mumbai. But almost forty-five years ago, the same amount of rainfall was recorded in a single day, on July 5, 1974, by the Santacruz observatory. The Colaba observatory had recorded 137.8 mm on that day. “In the last 24 hours, the city received 375.2 mm of rainfall, which is nearly 47 per cent of the average rainfall (870 mm) recorded in the month of July,” said an official.
IMD officials said a low pressure area that had formed over the north-west Bay of Bengal on June 30 had contributed to the heavy rain. “The system has become more marked, because of which strong westerlies (winds blowing towards west) are hitting the Western Ghats and causing heavy rainfall. The stronger the moisture-laden winds, the deeper will be the clouds and the more will be the rainfall,” said the IMD.
