Isolated places in the districts of Mumbai, Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg, Nasik, Jalgaon, Dhule, Nandurabar and Dharshivare are likely to be hit by moderate spells of rain during the next 3 to 4 hours, according to the IMD

The weather department, in its latest weather update, has predicted light spells of rain at isolated places in the districts of Ahmednagar, Dharashiv, Hingoli and Nanded and during the next 3–4 hours. Thunder or lightning is predicted to be accompanied by gusty winds in some areas

Meanwhile, flights to and from Mumbai faced disruptions on Friday morning. Various airlines issued statements saying that the delay was due to weather conditions and air traffic congestion at Mumbai airport

Meanwhile, senior pilots and experts suggest that delays could have been reduced by using various procedures

Earlier, on Friday morning, heavy rain caused low visibility and gusty winds. Sources from Mumbai Air Traffic Control (ATC) told mid-day, “The weather was not as favorable. There were crosswinds [winds perpendicular to the runway and landing and departing aircraft]. Crosswinds were six knots, gusting to 17 knots”

Though Mumbai ATC did not disclose the exact number of flights delayed, ATC sources said delays were not too high as the runway was operational, unlike on Monday morning when operations had to be paused due to the weather

A red alert was already in place for Raigad and Ratnagiri for Saturday

As per the IMD forecast, Satara and Kolhapur are likely to record extremely heavy rainfall at isolated places in the ghat areas and moderate rain in the plains on Sunday

A yellow alert has been issued for the rest of the state. IMD scientist Sushma Nair said the monsoon activity has picked up since July 11 and was likely to continue for two to three days