Rain, Lightning Strikes Kill 7 In North India; 200 Flights Delayed, J&K Highway Closed

New Delhi/Gurugram/Chandigarh/Lucknow/Shimla, May 2: Torrential rain lashed north India, including the Delhi-NCR, early Friday, leading to at least seven people dying, uprooting over 100 trees, and delaying more than 200 flights.
The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway was blocked after the rain caused a landslide.
A 28-year-old woman and her three children were killed when their house in southwest Delhi’s Najafgarh area collapsed after a tree fell on it.
“Police and fire department officers pulled the family out of the rubble and rushed them to a nearby hospital in Jaffarpur Kalan, where four of them were declared dead,” an officer said.
In Uttar Pradesh, three people were killed and several injured in lightning strikes.
Two of them were labourers working on a road project under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) in Firozabad. A family trying to cover a haystack with a tarpaulin sheet was also hit.
Diksha, 17, was struck dead by a lightning strike in Etah district’s Bhagwantpur village. Her sister, Sapna, suffered burns, so did her father and brother.
In Firozabad again, a lightning strike killed Satyendra, 35, and Vishnu, 25 on the spot on the Shikohabad-Nanemau road. A third, Devendra, 30, was injured and rushed to a hospital, police said.
The unexpected downpour was caused by moisture and wind convergence over the region, fed by both the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, the weather department said.
A mix of weather systems created conditions for thunderstorms.
Roads in Delhi, Gurugram, Faridabad, and Mathura were inundated with water as commuters remained stuck in slow-moving traffic for hours.
Between 100 and 200 trees were uprooted in Delhi alone, according to civic authorities.
In Faridabad, people were seen trying to pull out a half-submerged car stuck in waterlogged areas. Rows of vehicles were caught in a traffic jam in Ghaziabad.
Delhi’s Minto Bridge, ITO, Major Somnath Marg in RK Puram, and Khanpur were flooded with rainwater, causing heavy traffic jams in the areas. Traffic crawled on the Delhi-Gurugram Expressway while congestion was also seen at Hero Honda Chowk, Rajiv Chowk, and IFFCO Chowk.
Delhi received 77 mm of rain in just three hours beginning around 5 am.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a red alert for the city, urging people to remain vigilant.
Three flights were diverted and more than 200 flights were delayed at the Delhi airport as thunderstorms and gusty winds disrupted operations.
An official said two flights scheduled to land at the Delhi airport were diverted to Jaipur and one to Ahmedabad.
Delhi Fire Services received around 100 calls of rain-related incidents during the 3-4 hours of storm and heavy showers.
In the Lutyens’ Delhi area, at least 25 tree fall cases and 12 complaints related to waterlogging were received.
A Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL) spokesperson said it received 22 power cut complaints, which were restored within a few minutes to one hour.
Distribution Company BSES said that in a few low-lying and waterlogged areas, the electricity supply had to be cut temporarily as a precautionary measure.
The majority of Gurugram, a hub of scores of multinationals housed in swanky skyscrapers, was waterlogged.
The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway was closed after the rain triggered mudslides in the Union Territory’s Ramban district, a traffic police officer said.
Flash floods were triggered in the Chenab River, prompting the authorities in the Reasi and Akhnoor sectors to issue warnings against venturing near the riverbank.
“Vehicular movement has stopped from both sides on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway due to mudslides at Chamba Seri in Ramban following flash floods caused by a cloudburst,” a traffic police officer said.
UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath directed officials to visit affected areas, assess damage to crops and livestock, and ensure that relief is distributed immediately to those affected by lightning strikes, and rain- or storm-related accidents.
According to the IMD, west Uttar Pradesh is likely to witness rain and thundershowers at a few places on May 3 and 4, accompanied by strong surface winds of 25-35 km/hr and gusty winds reaching 40-50 km/hr at isolated locations.
In east Uttar Pradesh, isolated rains are expected on May 3 and more widespread showers on May 4. Thunderstorms with lightning and gusty winds (30-50 km/hr) are also likely during this period.
Himachal Pradesh capital Shimla and the surrounding area of Jubbarhatti were lashed by a hailstorm and rain, the weather office said.
The Tutikandi-ISBT Road was blocked for a few hours in Shimla after trees fell on three parked vehicles.
Kufri, Bilaspur, Reckong Peo, Bajura, Narkanada, and Tabo were smitten by a gusty wind, while thunderstorms occurred in Shimla, Jubbarhatti, Sundernagar, Jot, Bhuntar, Murari Devi, Kufri, and Kangra.
The Met station has issued an orange alert of hailstorms at isolated places in the state on Friday and orange and yellow warnings of thunderstorms, lightning, and winds with a speed of up to 30-50 kmph till next Thursday.
The minimum temperature dropped by 2-5 degrees Celsius at many places in Himachal, with Tabo in Lahaul and Spiti recording a low of 5.6 degrees Celsius.
Overnight rains and strong winds in many parts of Punjab and Haryana brought temperatures down slightly in the two states.
Hisar, Bathinda, and Gurdaspur received the most rainfall, the local Met department said. (Agencies)

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