Swapnil Mishra

After more than two decades of influenza testing in Mumbai, scientists have identified wheezing and sore throat as the strongest clinical predictors of influenza in critically ill patients, a finding that could help overcrowded public hospitals detect and treat cases faster during seasonal outbreaks. The study analysed Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI) admissions between February and August 2025. Published in the International Journal of Medicine and Public Health and funded by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), it is being described as the city's first year-round surveillance study linking bedside symptoms with laboratory-confirmed influenza cases.

A long-running dispute over feeding community dogs inside Runwal Forest Cooperative Housing Society (CHS) in Kanjurmarg West has escalated into a police matter.

Blood collection at the Bharat Ratna Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar (Shatabdi) Hospital blood bank in Kandivali has plunged by 43 per cent in three years, dropping from 1,746 units in 2022-23 to just 992 units in 2025-26. The decline has been particularly stark in recent months, with the BMC-run facility collecting only 25 units each in April and May this year.

Twenty-four hours after Saki Naka resident Aslam Sheikh slipped into an open manhole on Khairani Road and lost his life, there is no clarity on why the manhole lid was removed and who authorised the civic work on a stretch where footpath encroachment is rampant. Additional Municipal Commissioner (Eastern Suburbs) Avinash Dhakane said no authorised work order had been issued for the location.

If the waterlogged roads won't kill you, falling trees and branches will. In a brutal, five-day monsoon onslaught, Mumbai has recorded 678 incidents of uprooted trees and collapsed branches, that have caused the death of at least three people, injuries to dozens and damage to property and automobiles running into several lakhs. Two of those deaths occurred on Sunday, one in Kurla and the other in Aarey Colony.

A ceiling slab collapsed on Saturday inside the recently renovated Paediatric Outpatient Department (OPD) at the BMC's VN Desai Hospital. No one was injured.

Days after Mirror highlighted parents' concerns over unhygienic food in school and college canteens, the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has rolled out a statewide food safety regime for educational institutions, making regular inspections, FSSAI licensing and stricter hygiene standards mandatory.

At 1.25 pm on Thursday, the search at the Ghatkopar landslide site ended after nearly a day-and-a-half of digging.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) may be inspecting buildings across Mumbai for fire compliance, but within its own corridors, fire safety has been compromised, thanks to expired equipment. Mirror discovered expired fire suppression devices at multiple locations, including outside the Disaster Management Cell inside the BMC headquarters, which had a manufacturer-printed validity date of June 2026. The devices – called Fire Balls – are designed to activate when exposed to flames, releasing fire-extinguishing chemicals to help contain small fires in their initial stages.

More than Rs 2 lakh a month from Mumbai's civic coffers could soon be spent ensuring Mayor Ritu Tawde's meetings, inspection visits and public appearances get wider reach on social media.