Associated Press

Mumbai, July 28:

Rescuers searched with bare hands today for survivors buried under debris and rushed aid to villages cut off by record-breaking rains that paralysed Mumbai and surrounding areas, leaving over 500 people dead. At least 273 people died in Mumbai after being crushed by falling walls, trapped in cars or electrocuted when the most intense rains on record swept through the city on Tuesday evening. Phone networks collapsed, highways were blocked and the city’s airports were closed. At least 513 people were reported dead in different parts of Maharashtra, said BM Kulkarni, deputy secretary in charge of the state’s emergency control room in Mumbai. In the northern Mumbai suburb of Saki Naka, relief workers and survivors sifted through rubble today after a small hill crashed on a group of huts, leaving over 45 people missing and presumed dead. Bodies were piled onto trucks and private cars were flagged down to carry several dozen injured to hospitals.

“People ran as soon as the hill started crumbling. But the old had no chance,” said Shabana Shaikh, who lost her parents. She said authorities had asked shanty dwellers each year to vacate their homes. “But we didn’t really expect it to fall.” Officials said parts of Mumbai had been hit by up to 94.4 centimeters of rain on Tuesday, the highest one-day total in India’s history. Mumbai’s residents responded by opening up their homes and distributing food to motorists stuck in traffic and people wading through water. Residents tied ropes across flooded roads to help people wade through water as workers repaired communication networks and towed away abandoned cars and buses to clear the highways. Train services had resumed and flights were to begin later in the day. Mumbai residents began returning to their homes today in the worst-affected parts of the cityafter spending two nights stranded in offices, buses, cars or trains. Police officials said rescue teams had begun distributing food packets and water to people marooned in villages cut off by flood waters. They were also recovering bodies.

Oil field blaze toll 10

MUMBAI: The death toll from a massive fire on a platform in India’s biggest oil field rose to 10 on Thursday, while the government said it would take a month to recover most of the site’s lost production. Ships and helicopters rescued more than 350 survivors. The fire on the platform in the Arabian Sea, 160 km from the financial hub of Mumbai, was brought under control late on Wednesday after a dramatic rescue and firefighting mission in rough waters.

— AP

Pope’s condolences

VATICAN CITY: Pope Benedict XVI sent a telegram of condolences on Thursday to Indian officials saying he was praying for the victims and those involved in the relief and rebuilding effort. “With prayers that God will grant peace to those who have died and consolation and strength to the homeless, injured and suffering, he invokes gifts of wisdom, strength and peace upon authorities and those engaged in work of relief,” the telegram said. — AP