Delhi deluged by sudden storm, roads go under water

A sudden squall hit Delhi, causing waist-deep water, over 200 fallen trees, power outages, and traffic jams, exposing the city's vulnerability to storms.

Waist-deep water at Minto Bridge, over 200 tree falls, power outages in dozens of residential pockets, and traffic pileups across arterial roads — a sudden, violent squall tore through Delhi early Friday, swamping streets, snapping power lines, and catching the city unawares as dark thunderclouds rolled in without warning.

Vehicles stuck in water logged road on National Highway 24 near Vinod Nagar in East Delh on Friday. (RAJ K RAJ /HT PHOTO)

The storm, which lasted barely 30 minutes, exposed the Capital’s brittle response system — one that, despite new machinery and quicker helplines, remains vulnerable every time nature strikes without notice.

The public works department (PWD) fielded over 100 waterlogging complaints by mid-morning, while the MCD reported more than 60 cases of fallen trees across the capital — from Qutab Minar Metro station and Greater Kailash to Vasant Vihar, Lajpat Nagar, and East of Kailash.

At Minto Bridge, a burst pipe worsened the deluge, with visuals showing people wading through waist-deep water. “I have never seen the bridge so flooded,” said commuter Ramesh Kumar, 38, struggling to cross the road. “The water just kept rising.”

Traffic crawled on stretches of Ring Road, Mathura Road, and ITO, while Bhairon Marg and DDU Marg remained waterlogged until late morning. Residential colonies from Vasant Kunj and Chirag Delhi to Shastri Park and Model Town also went under.

PWD minister Parvesh Verma said 90% of waterlogging complaints were resolved within two hours. “In just two months, we’ve made the system accountable. But we are cleaning up the mess of the past decade — it will take time,” he said, while monitoring efforts at Minto Bridge.

Power supply snapped in several areas as trees brought down overhead cables or transformers shorted out. The NDMC alone logged 24 power-related complaints, while discoms BSES and Tata Power-DDL deployed emergency teams through the day. “We had to cut power in some areas to prevent electrocution,” a BSES spokesperson said. “But our teams responded quickly and restored supply where possible.”

Old Rajendra Nagar — where three civil services aspirants drowned in a coaching centre basement last July — saw waterlogging again on Friday. “I had to wade through water up to my knees just to open my shop,” said Jagdish Kumar, 68, a paan shop owner. “This area always floods during heavy rain, and the drainage work is taking forever.” Though water was pumped out before 7am, locals blamed the slow drainage work for their plight.

In central Delhi, NDMC said its teams received 25 complaints of tree falls and 12 for waterlogging, with issues at Shanti Path, Teen Murti Marg, and Lodhi Colony, among others.

Officials blamed blocked bell-mouths and floating debris for temporary flooding, saying most spots were cleared in under an hour. “We deployed pumps and suction machines immediately. The worst affected areas were cleared within 30 minutes,” said a PWD official. Still, stretches in Dwarka, ITO, RK Puram, Khanpur, and South Extension remained clogged well into the morning rush.

In parts of the central Delhi areas under the New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) there were 25 complaints for trees falling, 12 for waterlogging and 24 for no power supply. Waterlogging was reported briefly at Shanti Path, Gymkhana post office, Teen Murti Marg, Pandara Road, Panchsheel Marg, parts of Lodi Colony and Akbar Road.