5 die, traffic snarls, waterlogging, and flight delays as sudden summer storm, rain hit Delhi

A waterlogged Bhairon Marg (Express/Praveen Khanna)

At Green Park, a 25-year-old man, Ankit, was electrocuted after he came in contact with an iron gate of an under-construction property that was electrically charged due to a overhead wire that had snapped after being damaged in the storm. Ankit, a worker at the site, had taken shelter near the main gate to protect himself from rain, said police.

According to IMD data, Safdarjung — Delhi’s main weather station — recorded 77 mm of rain in just six hours, between 2.30 am and 8.30 am, the second highest in four years. Other areas also saw significant rainfall, with Lodhi Road receiving 78 mm, Pragati Maidan and Pitampura 71.5 mm each, Ridge 59.2 mm, Pusa 50 mm, Palam 45.6 mm, Najafgarh 40 mm, Ayanagar 39.4 mm and Jaffarpur 67.5 mm. A wind speed of 80 km per hour hit Delhi in the early hours, the IMD reported.

It has forecast a cloudy sky, with the possibility of rain or thunderstorms for the next six days.

On Friday, the maximum temperature settled at 29.1 degrees Celsius, 10.2 notches below the normal and the lowest for the month in the last two years. The minimum temperature was recorded at 18.5 degrees Celsius, 6.5 notches below the normal.

According to Public Works Department (PWD) officials, they received around 180 calls related to waterlogging incidents. The affected areas included ITO, Ring Road, Pragati Maidan Tunnel, South Extension, Dhaula Kuan, Minto Road underpass, Dwarka underpass, R K Puram, Lajpat Nagar, and Chirag Delhi flyover, among others.

“The first phase of desilting of drains is usually completed at the end of May as Delhi receives the first spell of monsoon rain at May end or first week of June. Today’s rain was unexpected rain officials were deployed at all waterlogged areas and accumulated water was removed by 9-9.30 am,” said a senior PWD official.

Asked why traffic snarls were reported even after the waterlogging was cleared, the official said, “Even after water is removed from roads, mud and garbage remains, making the roads slimy and dangerous. So, roads can be opened for traffic movement only after proper cleaning.”

As a tree fell on a car at Sheikh Sarai, its uprooted roots lifted another car. The tree also damaged a house (Express/Praveen Khanna)

PWD Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh’s office said that over 90% of the waterlogging complaints were resolved within two hours.

“In just two months, we have activated and made the system accountable. Teams were on alert well in advance, which enabled immediate response after the rainfall… We are dealing with the sins of the past 10 years, it will take time to clean that up. But we have started… PWD’s focus is not just on temporary fixes, but on building permanent solutions and a time-bound response system,” Singh said.

Officials said that the PWD’s 24×7 control rooms, mobile pump units, super suction machines, bell-mouth cleaning teams, and regional officers remained active throughout the night and the morning. In most cases, water was cleared within 30 to 60 minutes, and even in low-lying areas, the situation was brought under control shortly thereafter, they added.

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), on the other hand, received 14 complaints related to waterlogging. According to a MCD report, neighbourhoods such as Vasant Vihar, Defence Colony, Chhattarpur, Shastri Park, and Model Town, were inundated. Complaints of waterlogging were also received from commercial areas like Karol Bagh and Azad Market.

The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC), which provides civic services to Lutyens’ Delhi, received 12 waterlogging-related complaints. The affected areas included Niti Marg on Shanti Path, Mansingh Road roundabout, Teen Murti Marg, Kali Bari Marg, Jor Bagh, Pandara Road, and parts of Chanakyapuri and Lodhi Colony.

Uprooted trees near JLN Stadium and Safdarjung Enclave after heavy rainfall on Friday (Express/Praveen Khanna)

The Delhi Fire Services (DFS), meanwhile, said that it received at least 80 rain and storm-related calls between 5 am and 10 am.

The heavy downpour also led to the uprooting of several trees, damaging several houses and vehicles.

The MCD received 53 complaints of fallen trees from across the city. Notable locations included near Qutub Minar Metro Station, inside the police colony at Hauz Khas, the Dwarka district court complex, and multiple areas in Defence Colony and Safdarjung Enclave. Uprooted trees damaged houses and vehicles near AIIMS, Safdarjung, and Aurobindo Marg.

The NDMC, meanwhile, received 24 complaints regarding trees being uprooted. However, eight of those were left unattended, as they fell outside its jurisdiction, said officials.

The rain went on to disrupt power as well as cables were damaged by fallen trees and branches. In all, 22 interruptions were reported across Delhi and average restoration time was one hour 7 minutes, said officials. Some areas affected included Chattarpur, Mundka, Jaffarpur, Dwarka, Pitampura, Rohini, Model Town, Lajpat Nagar, Sangam Vihar, Paharganj, Sadar Bazar, Laxmi Nagar, and Trilok Puri, among others. Power has now been restored in all affected areas, said officials.

Flight operations took a hit at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport on Friday morning with more than 500 flights being delayed. As of 9 pm, 539 departing flights were delayed and 18 flights cancelled, according to live flight tracking website Flightradar24. Due to adverse weather conditions in Delhi, three flights were diverted – one to Ahemdabad and two to Jaipur, officials said. Waterlogging, too, was reported near the airport.