Monsoon fury in Himachal: 167 roads closed and 130 transformers down, yellow alert till August 21
Temperatures are likely to remain near normal over the next three to four days
Heavy monsoon rains continue to disrupt normal life in Himachal Pradesh, with 167 roads, including the Mandi-Kotli National Highway, remaining blocked across the state. Besides, 130 transformers and 222 drinking water supply schemes have been disrupted after sustaining damage during the ongoing monsoon season.
According to the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC), of the 167 blocked roads, 84, including one National Highway near Dharampur, are in Mandi district, followed by 35 in Kullu, 12 in Sirmaur, six each in Shimla, Kangra, Hamirpur and Una, four in Chamba, three in Lahaul and Spiti, and two each in Solan and Bilaspur.
Of the 130 disrupted transformers, 68 are in Lahaul and Spiti, 42 in Hamirpur, 12 in Solan, and two each in Shimla, Kullu and Kangra. Similarly, 107 drinking water schemes are affected in Hamirpur, 55 in Sirmaur, 28 in Bilaspur, 26 in Kangra, five in Shimla and one in Solan.
In Shimla, several vehicles parked along the Bhattakufar-Mehli road were damaged after a landslide near Bhattakufar. No casualties or injuries were reported. Teams of the district administration cleared the debris and restored traffic movement. Train services were also disrupted due to adverse weather conditions.
Meanwhile, the Meteorological Centre has issued yellow alerts for heavy rainfall across parts of the state till August 21. For August 20, yellow alerts have been issued for Kangra, Kullu, Mandi, Sirmaur, Una and Hamirpur districts, with heavy rain likely at isolated places. Authorities have warned of possible landslides and flash floods in vulnerable areas.
Light rainfall is expected in the remaining parts of the state. Temperatures are likely to remain near normal over the next three to four days, with no significant change in minimum or maximum temperatures.
During the past 24 hours, moderate to heavy rainfall was recorded in several areas. Dharamsala received 127.2 mm of rain, followed by Palampur (111 mm), Nahan (76 mm), Kasauli (60 mm), Bilaspur (57 mm), Una (39 mm), Mandi (33.5 mm), Shimla (32 mm), Solan (26.8 mm) and Sundernagar (19.8 mm).
Maximum temperatures recorded were 24.5°C in Shimla, 28°C in Dharamsala, 26.8°C in Manali, 26.5°C in Solan, 30.6°C in Kangra, 31.4°C in Una, 31.1°C in Sundernagar, 30°C in Bilaspur, 31.6°C in Hamirpur, 19°C in Kufri, 21.7°C in Kalpa, 27.8°C in Nahan, 21.7°C in Keylong and 27.9°C in Chamba.
The highest maximum temperature in the state was recorded in Mandi at 32.6°C, while the lowest minimum temperature was 12.1°C in Kukumseri, Lahaul and Spiti.
