128 Roads In Himachal Closed Due To Landslides, Weather Office Issues ‘Orange’ Alert

At least 128 roads were closed in Himachal Pradesh following landslides and flash floods caused by the ongoing rain spell, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Friday.

The weather office has also issued an ‘orange’ warning for heavy to very rainfall, accompanied by thunderstorm and lightning, at isolated places on Saturday and a ‘yellow’ warning for heavy rain till August 15.

The department warned of a low to moderate flash flood risk in isolated parts of Mandi, Bilaspur, Solan, Sirmaur, Shimla and Kullu districts till Saturday. Spells of heavy to very heavy rain will fall at isolated places in Una, Hamirpur, Kangra, Mandi and Sirmaur districts on Saturday, it added.

The weather department has cautioned of the possibility of damage to plantations, crops, vulnerable structures and kutcha houses due to strong winds and waterlogging in low-lying areas.

According to the State Emergency Operation Centre, 60 roads are closed in Mandi, 37 in Kullu, 21 in Shimla, five in Kangra, four in Kinnaur and one in Hamirpur district. It added that 44 power and 67 water supply schemes were disrupted.

Since Thursday evening, Jogindernagar in Mandi district recorded the highest rainfall at 160 mm, followed by Dharamshala (125.4 mm), Kataula (112.3 mm), Bharari (98.4 mm), Kandaghat (80 mm), Palampur (78.2 mm), Pandoh (76 mm), Baijnath (75 mm), Kufri (70.8 mm) and Shimla (60.5 mm).

The water supply in Shimla was affected due to turbidity in the sources. The state capital, which gets water from six sources– Gumma, Giri, Churot, Seog, Chairh and Koti Brandi, received a supply of 24.64 million litres per day (MLD) against a normal of 42-45 MLD on Friday.

More than 100 people have been killed in rain-related incidents and the state has suffered losses of about Rs 842 crores between June 27 and August 9, officials added.

The rainfall deficit in the state during the monsoon that began on June 1 stood at 28 per cent till August 9 with Himachal Pradesh receiving 321.8 mm rain against an average of 445.7 mm.

Kukumseri in the Lahaul & Spiti district was the coldest place in the state with a night temperature of 13.4 degrees Celsius while Una was the hottest, recording a maximum temperature of 35.8 degrees.