Rain, hail, and gusty winds bring chill to Tricity

A fresh western disturbance once again lashed the Tricity with rain, thunderstorm, lightning and gusty winds on Tuesday, dragging temperatures down sharply and prompting a fresh round of weather alerts for the days ahead.

Even as Chandigarh, Mohali and Panchkula woke up to a partly cloudy sky with shallow fog and the sun playing hide and seek, light to moderate rain set in from around 9.30 am and intensified through the day, with hail and strong winds of 40-50 kmph reported at isolated places.

By 5.30 pm, Chandigarh had recorded 16.7 mm rainfall, the highest in Haryana and the second highest in Punjab after Patiala, which logged 29 mm. The evening spell turned noisy and biting, with loud thunderclaps, lightning flashes and chilly winds further tightening cold wave conditions across the region.

Unlike last Friday’s storm that battered the Tricity and disrupted power and water supply for over 30 hours in several pockets, Tuesday’s weather caused no disruption. Power and water supply remained normal and there were no reports of damage to public property till the filing of this report.

The sharp weather change sent day temperatures tumbling. Chandigarh’s maximum temperature plunged by 5.4 degrees to settle at 15.5 degrees Celsius, slipping to 3.9 degrees below normal. The minimum temperature, however, rose sharply by 3.9 degrees to 10.1 degrees Celsius, standing 2.3 degrees above normal. Relative humidity ranged between 91 per cent and 66 per cent during the day. Seasonal rainfall in the city stood at 64.6 mm, around 54 per cent above normal.

Across the region, the chill deepened. Punjab’s average maximum temperature fell by 3.1 degrees and remained appreciably below normal by 4.9 degrees, while Haryana saw a fall of 2.1 degrees, staying 3.7 degrees below normal. The lowest minimum temperature in Punjab was recorded at Ludhiana at 7.7 degrees Celsius, while Haryana’s lowest minimum was 5.8 degrees Celsius at Gurugram. Patiala emerged as the wettest station in Punjab, while Narnaul in Haryana reported hail as per media reports.

The weather in the plains became as cold as popular hill stations, and even colder in some places. While Chandigarh’s maximum was 15.5 degrees, Shimla recorded a much lower night at 6 degrees but a day maximum of 10.6 degrees. Kufri stayed colder with a maximum of 7.1 degrees and a minimum of 1.7 degrees. Manali shivered at a maximum of 3.6 degrees and minimum of 0.6 degrees with 6 mm rain, while Srinagar remained icy with a maximum of 2.2 degrees and a minimum of minus 0.1 degree, also recording 6 mm rainfall. Dharamsala logged a relatively milder maximum of 13.1 degrees.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) sounded an orange alert for Tuesday and has now issued a yellow alert for cold wave and dense fog at isolated places for the next three days from Wednesday to Friday. Scattered showers are likely at isolated places on Wednesday, while Thursday and Friday are expected to remain largely dry. A yellow alert has again been issued for Sunday, when fairly widespread light to moderate rainfall accompanied by thunderstorm, lightning and gusty winds of 30-40 kmph is forecast. There is also a possibility of isolated showers on Saturday and Monday.

Forecasters said minimum temperatures are likely to fall by 3 to 5 degrees over the next two days, after which no major change is expected. For the next five days, the Tricity is likely to see maximum temperatures ranging between 16 and 22 degrees Celsius and minimums between 8 and 10 degrees, with intermittent cloudiness and spells of fog keeping winter firmly in place.