Mumbai: Heavy rainfall in the city triggered a major disruption on Tuesday when two monorail trains came to a halt due to a power failure, leaving nearly 800 passengers stranded and prompting a large-scale rescue effort by multiple agencies.

One train stalled near Mysore Colony in Chembur with 582 passengers onboard, while another carrying more than 200 commuters was safely towed back to Wadala station.

In Chembur, the air-conditioning system failed following the outage, causing suffocation inside the compartments. Rescue teams used snorkels and ladders to bring passengers down from a curved section of the track located around six metres above the ground. The operation stretched over an hour before everyone was evacuated.

Medical teams treated 14 passengers at the site for breathlessness, while one individual was taken to Sion Hospital for further care. “The coaches turned pitch dark. People switched on their phone flashlights. It was suffocating, children were crying, and a few fainted,” said a commuter, recalling the ordeal.

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), which operates the monorail, described the disruption as a “minor power supply issue.”