The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a red alert for heavy to very heavy rainfall for Himachal Pradesh during the next two days, officials said.
In six of the state’s 12 districts, including Shimla, heavy to very heavy rain is expected over the course of the next 24 hours, according to a “red alert” issued by the meteorological office on Wednesday. Parts of the districts of Kangra, Kullu, Mandi, Shimla, Solan, and Sirmaur have received the’red alert’ warning. On Thursday, the MeT Department also released an orange warning for severe to very heavy rain.
For the hilly state on August 24, the weather service has also issued an orange signal for heavy to very heavy rainfall of 115.6 to 204.4mm. The weather service also issued warnings for localized flooding and landslides, advising people to avoid exposed buildings.
The Himachal Police has in an update also stated that, “The Meteorological Department has issued an orange alert warning of “heavy to very heavy rainfall” on Wednesday and Thursday and a yellow alert for heavy rainfall on August 25 and 26. Please avoid unnecessary travel and keep distance from water sources”
Beginning on Wednesday, all schools and colleges in the Shimla, Mandi, and Solan districts have been shut down for a two-day period.
Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, the chief minister of Himachal Pradesh, urged “people to avoid traveling at night.” People who live in landslide-prone locations were urged to leave their homes, he said.
On August 23, however, hundreds of vehicles were left stuck in the Kullu area as rain caused damage to the Kullu-Mandi route. Sakshi Verma, the SP for Kullu, stated, “Due to the monsoon, both of the highways linking Kullu district and Mandi have been destroyed. The detour via Pandoh is also damaged, and PWD is working to repair it.
As heavy rain continued to fall in Shimla on Wednesday, the problems faced by the general public grew. These issues included water logging, landslides, and tree uprooting, which not only caused people inconvenience but also put their lives in danger.
Shimla received 190 mm of rain during the course of the previous 24 hours, and 60 mm of rain fell during one hour in the morning, according to an official.
One of the locals shared his plight with a news organization and said, “I’m from Sanjauli. We are having issues because of water logging on highways, which is also uprooting trees and blocking roads. The circumstance is deteriorating.
Another resident said, “There is a fear of landslides and the uprooting of trees all around. I am in a state of shivering due to fear. It was difficult for us to be here in this tough condition of heavy rainfall,” another local resident said.
The State has suffered substantial damage as a result of flash floods, cloudbursts, and landslides brought on by nonstop rain.
The entire state of Himachal Pradesh has been designated as a “natural calamity affected area” by the state government. The state administration recently reported that the overall financial damage caused by the torrential rains in Himachal had topped 10,000 crore. With 113 landslides happening during the monsoon season, a total of 2,022 houses have been completely ruined, 9,615 houses have been partially damaged. According to a government bulletin, 224 people perished as a result of the monsoon storm, while 117 have died in car accidents in the state thus far.
