Bengaluru witnessed unprecedented chaos as heavy rains accompanied by hailstorms lashed the city on Wednesday evening. The iconic Bookworm bookshop on Church Street suffered extensive damage, with nearly 5,000 books destroyed after rainwater gushed into the shop within minutes. Proprietor Krishna Gowda recounted the harrowing experience: "The hailstones clogged the drainage outlets, and almost instantly, water started pouring in from all sides." By 5:30 PM, shelves that once held stories, ideas, and memories were soaked, with thousands of books — including The Penguin Book Of Indian Poets, Cubbon Park by Roopa Pai, and Percy Jackson & the Olympians — rendered beyond repair. The titles spanned history, philosophy, biographies, and more. While the financial hit is estimated at Rs 14 lakh, Gowda emphasized that the real loss is immeasurable. "Books carry knowledge, emotion, and years of effort. That's what hurts the most," he said.
Public Transport Disrupted
Public transport took a severe hit as flooding choked key transit points across Bengaluru. In the southern part of the city, waterlogging around Jayadeva Hospital Metro station left roads toward Silk Board partly non-motorable, forcing traffic into a single lane. The Silk Board Metro station premises were also inundated, worsening congestion, especially with the double-decker flyover shut. At KSR railway station, a fallen tree near the entry damaged parked vehicles, adding to the commuters' woes.
Internet Outages in Offices and Homes
In several areas, uprooted trees brought down overhead cables, snapping connectivity at the peak of the workday. An X user from Gandhinagar posted: "Today, Bengaluru received its official first rain, and it's absolutely wild! Leaves are flying, trees are splitting, internet cables are destroyed, and there is silent thunder." In the Central Business District (CBD), both those working from home and in offices struggled to stay online, with many resorting to mobile hotspots.
Rainwater Enters Corridors of Power
Not just the city roads, but even the corridors of Vidhana Soudha were waterlogged after the heavy rains. Rainwater gushed into offices on the second and third floors of the state secretariat — which include offices of most ministers, their secretaries, and even the offices of opposition leaders and legislative party offices. The incident highlighted the severity of the downpour.
Tree Falls and Damage
A total of 170 trees and 408 branches were reported fallen across the city as of 8:30 PM on Wednesday. The central zone reported the highest damage, with 67 trees and 131 branches down, followed by the west zone with 55 trees and 121 branches. The lowest impact was in the east zone, with just one tree and four branches. Civic authorities received over 500 calls, with some residents also lodging complaints via WhatsApp. Officials said heavy cloud movement was first observed in the east before it shifted towards the central, south, and west zones. In the evening, a tree fell on a woman residing in Kaval Byrasandra, injuring her head. Officials confirmed she was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.
Cutout of Late Actor Crashes on Magadi Road
Following a tree fall, a giant cutout of late actor Vishnuvardhan fell near Prasanna theatre on Magadi Road around 5:40 PM, briefly disrupting traffic movement, traffic police said. An officer stated, "All the obstacles at the spot were cleared by 6:20 PM and traffic flow returned to normal." The incident added to the evening's chaos.
