Mumbai witnessed the first rains of the season, accompanied by a massive duststorm which turned the sky dark around 3 pm today. Rainfall brought relief to the residents of Mumbai and its adjoining area from heat but the skyline of the metropolitan was encircled by dusty winds. 

The sudden change in weather brought traffic to a standstill as commuters took shelter during the storm. 

Strong winds and rain were witnessed in the Ghatkopar, Bandra Kurla, Dharavi area of Mumbai. Landing and takeoff operations at the Mumbai airport, one of the busiest airports in the country, have been suspended until further notice, officials said.

A 100-foot tall billboard was uprooted and fell on a petrol pump at the Cheddanagar Junction in Mumbai’s Ghatkopar, trapping vehicles and people, visuals showed. Some people are heard saying “They are dead…they are dead”. No casualties have been reported so far but a rescue operation is underway.

📌Mod to intense thunderstorms over Red marked areas; District of Thane, Palghar, Raigad, Nagar & eastern suburbs of Mumbai during next 2 hrs. Mulund, Tiltwala, Kalyaan
📌Mod to severe thunderstorms over yellow areas covering South ghat areas of Pune, Satara next 2,3 hrs
Watch pl pic.twitter.com/WF7qd7LWsE

— K S Hosalikar (@Hosalikar_KS) May 13, 2024

The weather office, in an update, said thunderstorms accompanied by lightning and moderate to intense spells of rain with gusty winds reaching 50-60 km/hr are very likely to occur at isolated places in the districts of Palghar and Thane during the next 3-4 hours.

Strong winds caused trees to fall in several areas. In Mumbai’s neighbouring Navi Mumbai, a tree fell on a busy road in the Aroli Sector 5 area. No one was injured but the traffic stopped and commuters parked their vehicles at a safe distance as heavy winds continued to hit the city.