Mumbai rains: Century-old tree falls in Byculla; no injuries reported

Heavy monsoon showers bring down century-old tree in Byculla (Pic/Ahmed Memon)

While the intense spells of rain continue to lash Mumbai and surrounding areas, a massive tree, estimated to be between 100 and 150 years old, fell down in Byculla at Dr. Mascarenhas Road on Monday amid continuous rainfall. The tree fall incident damaged several parked vehicles, which triggered fresh concerns over the stability of trees in heavily concretised parts of the city.

The tree fell along the roadside, crushing four to five parked vehicles. Fortunately, no injuries were reported.

A local shopkeeper, Ahmed Memon, who has been running his business in the area for nearly three decades, while briefing about the incident, said that this could have had devastating consequences had the tree fallen in the opposite direction.

"It was about 100 to 150 years old. If it had fallen on the other side, four to five shops, including mine, would have been flattened. I have been seeing this tree for the past three decades and always loved the shade it provided," Memon said.

Increasing tree-fall incidents remain a concern in Mumbai

He also expressed concern over the increasing number of tree-fall incidents in Mumbai during this year's monsoon, suggesting that recent concretisation around the tree may have weakened its root system.

"This year there has been a rise in such incidents. The area around this tree had been concretised recently. It probably fell because the base was cemented," he stated.

The incident occurred as heavy monsoon showers continued to lash Mumbai, leading to multiple tree falls, waterlogging, and traffic disruptions across the city.

Harbour Line services briefly hit after tree falls on tracks

In a separate incident on Monday, Harbour Line train services were briefly affected on Monday after a tree fell near Guru Tegh Bahadur (GTB) railway station following heavy monsoon rains in Mumbai.

The incident affected train movement on the busy suburban route, causing delays for commuters during the afternoon.

Emergency teams reached the site soon after the incident and began clearing the fallen tree from the tracks.

Restoration work was completed quickly, and normal train services resumed by 3 pm, according to railway officials.

The disruption came as Mumbai continued to experience heavy monsoon rainfall, increasing the risk of trees falling and affecting transport infrastructure across the city.

Following the clearance of the tree, Harbour Line operations returned to normal by 3 pm, officials said.