NEWS: Torrential Rains Batter Bombay, Hundreds Dead After 37 Inches Fall in One Day

The worst storm ever to strike India has left hundreds dead in its wake. The storm dropped 37 inches of rain in just a day, leaving Bombay paralyzed and causing massive flooding. Many are stranded, and an accurate death toll may not be known for some time. Witnesses describe a solid wall of water descending from the clouds.



This is incredibly telling. The weather appears to be out of control. This level of destruction is unprecendented in a nation that's accustomed to the heaviest rains in the world. Areas of Nagaland sometimes see several hundred inches every year, with up to 300 rainy days a year, but this is another story entirely. 37 inches in one day, that's entirely unheard of.

I can't even begin to imagine the destruction. It's very hard to get good information out of the more remote regions, since the rain has destroyed communications and washed out just about all the roads. As the clean-up effort begins, the full extent of the damage should be known.

I love the rain more than anyone, ever since I was a little boy. I've wanted, for some time, to move to Nagaland to experience the monsoons first hand, but I never could have imagined anything like this. I suppose I should be grateful I stayed in the states.

Holy Cow!!!!!
pardon the pun, but I have a right.

That is amazing, sounds like that hurricane that dumped over 20 inches in Mexico. That much water in an urban setting can be devasting. Now they'll have to worry water borne diseases next.

Bad pun!

This just blew my mind, I gotta tell ya. To my knowledge, this has never happened before, anywhere, in the entirety of recorded history. We're talking 3+ FEET of freakin' rain in less than 24 hours.

You're right about the problems they face now. I imagine dysentry will be the biggest killer, I hope their hell services are up to the task ot tackling that problem while at the same time rescuing those folks who are trapped or carried away by the floods.

I imagine the death toll will rise sharply over the next couple of days. We could be looking at thousands dead from flooding, and perhaps many times that number from dehydration and disease.

Remember also, the problems with floods don't stop at destruction and disease. The floodwaters contaminate all the wells in the area, and they need to be scrubbed before the water is drinkable. This could take some time, and in the meantime, people are thirsty.

This exacerbates the problems associated with dysentry, and that's why I think dehydration will be a major problem. I hope the disaster relief agencies step up to the plate and offer their help, at least as far as potable water. That's a primary need.

If anyone has any information regarding the response that's underway, please post it here. I haven't been able to find many specifics yet. Thanks.

Not to downplay the event by any means at all, just as an FYI:

www.theweatherstop.com...

Greatest Rainfall A recorded 73.62 inches of rain fell in 24 hours in Cilos, Reunion, Indian Ocean on March 15 and 16, 1952.

Also found some other records here, but it's Geocities without citations, so I'll let you guys read it and determine the plausibility. Some of the stuff they present there are pretty interesting if true though.

Wow!

Thanks for posting that, I had no idea.

I guess that the setting is what makes this so damaging, it's such a densely populated metropolis.

But still, WOW! 70+ inches in one day. Unbelievable!

UPDATE
The death toll continues to rise into the hundreds. The most recent that I've been able to find points to 450 people so far.

www.msnbc.msn.com...&&CE=3032506" target="_blank" class="postlink">Link 1

Link 2

I have lots of friends in that area, I can see alot of my evening is going to be taken up on the phone.

It's one of those events that no matter how much planning takes place, it is always going to be horrific.

That is a LOT of rain.
I bet people are 'pouring' over records now to see if this is anomalous and I bet it 'precipitates' a fresh wave of doom-mongers.

BTW, wasn't the monsoon two weeks late in India?

UPDATE
The death toll is now nearing 750.

www.foxnews.com...

This was a terrible tragedy. I hope that the conditions that led to the unusual rains can be better understand, so next time there might be some warning. If nothing else, being aware of the precursors might allow some people to avert disaster by getting out of low-lying areas before the flooding becomes severe.