255mm rainfall in city leaves life paralysed
The Statesman | 24 September 2025An extreme heavy downpour of more than 255mm within 24 hours created mayhem in the city and dislocated several citizens from their shelters from submerged houses.
The weather scientists at Alipore said that the intensity of rainfall in a single spell was unprecedented in recent times. According to the weather official, taking 12 months rainfall data into consideration, Kolkata witnessed the sixth highest rainfall today since 1888, the year from when records are available with the Regional Meteorological Centre. Likewise, if only the month of September is considered, the city recorded the third highest rainfall since 1978. As explained by the scientists, the reason for the intense spell was a thick volume of cloud with 5-7km in height remaining hung over Kolkata and its adjoining areas for a few hours before and during the incessant rainfall. “As the rainfall belt remained stagnant over the city while the low pressure system was near Gangetic West Bengal and North Odisha, the clouds with heavy moisture content brought extremely heavy rainfall for two-and-a-half hours over Kolkata and places surrounding the city,” informed a weather department official.
The weather office, however, refuted the claims of a cloudburst over the city. According to the scientists, the first and foremost criterion for a cloudburst is 100mm hourly downpour whereas Kolkata recorded 98mm rainfall as the highest rainfall during 3 a.m. to 4 a.m. “Even though it was not a cloudburst as the first criterion was not met, the impact of the intense single spell of rainfall was that of a cloudburst,” said a scientist.
The people of Kolkata woke up to an inundated city today where rain water had entered several houses in low-lying areas. Several citizens in Mominpur, Park Circus, Bhawanipore and other pockets had to leave their houses that came under water. As the morning progressed, the rush of reaching workplace increased, leaving citizens struggling to pass through flooded streets that had water almost touching the waist. The urge to join work during the peak pre-Puja days, took at least nine lives in the city and its neighbouring places.
Six hours of relentless rainfall brought an extremely difficult day for the Kolkatans. Several citizens claimed that they had never seen such intense spell in their lifetime while the elderly citizens compared the day with the flood of 1978 when the city had received 369.6mm rainfall on 28 September. Not only the pockets like Thanthania, Central Avenue or Behala, city’s major thoroughfares were inundated. Cars and buses were half submerged while many bikers complained of their vehicle engine becoming dysfunctional.
While the city was still struggling with the flooded streets, a fire broke out near Gariahat.
The high tide of 18.6 feet in river Hooghly at 2.06 p.m. added to the woes of the citizens. According to city mayor, as the Adi Ganga and Hooghly remained swollen, water from these waterbodies entered into the city on opening of lock gates. Given the situation, the lock gates had to be closed between noon and 4 p.m. resulting in delay of reduction in water level on the streets.
As informed by the weather scientists, the system is said to have lost a large part of its moisture content for now and Kolkata along with its neighbouring districts are tipped to get light to moderate rainfall tomorrow.
Another system brewing in the Bay of Bengal is anticipated to turn into a depression on 26 September. The system is anticipated to cross Odisha and Andhra Pradesh on 27 September. However, the depression is unlikely to have any major impact on Kolkata which is anticipated to get light to moderate rains. But districts including Howrah, South 24-Parganas, Jhargram, East Midnapore, West Midnapore are predicted to get heavy rainfall on that day.
