117 mm in 1 hour

Traffic came to a standstill in knee-deep waters and authorities responded to incidents of buildings partially collapsing and trees falling.

No serious injury was reported in any of the incidents.

The downpour,that started around noon and continued till about 5.30 pm,was such that water clogged South Delhi roads in no time and people were seen stranded in cars for a long time. Many vehicles also broke down,adding to the chaos.

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi responded to 18 complaints of waterlogging,two of fallen trees and attended to six complaints of buildings collapsing partially. MCD officials said no serious injury was reported.

Structures that partially collapsed included a police booth in New Seemapuri,a terrace of a house in Gali Sui Wali,Mori Gate,Kashmere Gate,Sat Narayan Mandir,East India Apartments in New Ashok Nagar and Chilla village.

The rain returned after six days. Last Friday,Delhi received 96.11 mm rainfall between 4 pm and 5.30 pm. The Met Department said that rains would continue with a fresh spell expected over North West India over the next 48 hours.

Traffic police had a tough time managing stranded commuters and ensuring movement of vehicles in the downpour.

“The areas with the biggest problem were South and South West Delhi. There were jams in Dhaula Kuan for more than an hour,” said B S Bassi,Special Commissioner of Police (Traffic).

Vehicles moved sluggishly at Moolchand,Greater Kailash I and II,Adchini,Mayapuri flyover,Munirka,Govindpuri,MB Road near IGNOU and Rohtak Road.

Komal Aneja,a resident of Kalkaji,said that she was stuck at the Dhaula Kuan crossing for over two hours.

“What normally takes me half an hour,took two hours today. I saw vehicles breaking down. At places,traffic lights were not working,” Aneja said.

Shashank Sharma,who works in the hospitality industry,said that AIIMS,IIT,Khel Gaon were the worst-hit.

“I drove for hours in waterlogged roads,scared that I would have no access to any friend who could help me if my car were to break down,” he said.

Narendra Kumar Gupta,a resident of Durgapuri,said he was fed up with the recurring waterlogging problem. “Four lanes near our house always get submerged and water from the drains overflow. I have been complaining about the open drains to the MCD for the past two years but they don’t listen.”

The deluge also caused problems to residents and commuters on Rani Jhansi Road near Filmistan Cinema,Subhash Park,Karawal nagar Road,Chirag Dilli flyover,Mayapuri underpass,Janakpuri and Jhilmil Colony.