November downpour breaks record

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, November 10

The unprecedented snowstorm this week was one of the severest in the Valley as Srinagar recorded a precipitation of 133.5 mm, which was more than the total downpour recorded in the entire November last year.

An official of the Srinagar Meteorological Centre said Srinagar received 133.5 mm of total precipitation during snowstorm. The official said the city received 1.7 mm downpour on Wednesday, 55 mm on Thursday and 76.8 mm on Friday.

The official said the precipitation during the three days of snowstorm was more than what was received in November 2018, when the region had received multiple spells of rare autumn snowfall.

Usually, J&K receives an average of 47.6 mm rainfall from October 1 to November 7. Gulmarg had received heaviest snowfall at 222 cm during the three days.

The snowstorm had caused large scale damage to orchards and electricity transmission networks. It also led to closure of Srinagar airport and highways.

Shahid Chaudhary, Deputy Commissioner, Srinagar, conducted inspections on Saturday and visited hospitals to get first hand information.

He announced additional power generators with fuel for three months for major hospitals, including Lal Ded Hospital and GB Pant Hospital.

“The snowfall caused massive damage to infrastructure as trees got uprooted,” he said.