Billboard falls in Mumbai dust storm, 7 injured
What's the story
At least seven people were injured after a metal billboard crashed on them amid a strong dust storm in Mumbai.
Several people are feared trapped under the billboard—which had been installed opposite a petrol station in Ghatkopar
The storm, which began late in the afternoon, led to transportation issues and power outages across the city.
According to reports, local trains, a section of the metro network, and airport services were also temporarily stopped amid the storm.
Rescue efforts
Rescue operations underway, public transport disrupted
Rescue teams have reached the site and are searching for survivors.
Separately, a billboard landing on an overhead wire halted metro service between Aarey and Andheri East. Additionally, an overhead equipment pole between Thane and Mulund bent due to strong winds, affecting suburban train services.
Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) Mumbai issued a "nowcast warning" forecasting a thunderstorm accompanied by lightning and moderate to intense rain for Thane, Palghar, and Mumbai.
Weather impact
Power outages and weather alerts follow dust storm
Despite the chaos, the unseasonal rain brought some relief from recent high temperatures.
The dust storm uprooted trees across various parts of the city while satellite towns including Thane, Ambernath, Badlapur, Kalyan, and Ulhasnagar experienced moderate rain.
The Regional Meteorological Center (RMC) issued a yellow alert for several districts including Thane, Palghar, Raigad, Solapur, Latur, Beed, Nagpur, Ratnagiri, and Sindhudurg.
The alert indicated light rain or thundershowers are expected over the next 24 hours.
Weather analysis
Dust storm and rainfall
The dust storm and subsequent rainfall are considered a seasonal phenomenon.
The weather department attributed Monday's event to a trough line formed in Madhya Maharashtra and Konkan belt, predicting it would settle down within two to three hours.
This dust storm comes just three days after a similar event hit Delhi and its surrounding National Capital Region (NCR) on May 10, causing two fatalities and injuring 23 others.