High-velocity winds hit Palampur, woman killed

Our Correspondent

Palampur, May 16

A 26-year-old woman was killed when a tree fell on her after the region was hit by high-velocity winds on Monday. The deceased, Agnibada, a resident of Jharkhand, was crossing the Palampur-Dharamshala road when the tree fell on her. She was residing at Gugghar.

Palampur SDM Amit Guleria said an immediate relief of Rs 10,000 had already been given to her family members.

In another accident, some persons had a close shave when roof of a house blew off and hit vehicles passing on the road near the Palampur bypass. Extensive loss of property have been reported from Palampur, Baijnath and other parts of the region.

Power supply, telecommunication services and traffic were hit after many trees were uprooted in the region. A tree uprooted near the mission compound, damaging transmission lines. Another big tree uprooted near Old Sabzi Mandi, disrupting vehicular traffic on the Palampur-Dharamsala highway. Traffic on the Pathankot-Mandi highway came to a halt as trees fell on the road at Holta, Banuri, Kalu Di Hati and other places.

HPSEB Executive Engineer Sandeep Kumar said all efforts were being made to restore power supply in Palampur but it could take hours. He said several poles had either uprooted or damaged by winds.

NHAI Project Director Anil Sen said trees that came down on the highway were being removed with the help of JCB machines and saws. He said traffic could be restored by late night.

Meanwhile, the SDM visited many places of the town along with a team. A team of the Revenue Department, headed by Tehsildar Sarthak Sharma, has been assigned the job to prepare a detailed report of loss caused to public and private property in order to provide necessary relief.

Efforts on to restore power

All efforts are being made to restore power supply in Palampur but it can take hours. Several poles have been damaged. — Sandeep Kumar, HPSEB Executive Engineer

Join Whatsapp Channel of The Tribune for latest updates.