More showers likely over the next two days

A sudden gust, thunderstorms and heavy rain lashed many parts of the city on Monday as Bengaluru continues to be under the spell of pre-monsoon showers.

While the Indian Meteorological Department recorded 5.8mm of rainfall at its centre on Palace Road, the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC) said the highest rainfall that the city received was 32.5mm in east Bengaluru.

Roads were water-logged while power supply was disrupted. According to Bengaluru Electricity Supply Company, 11 trees or their branches had fallen on electric wires, while one pole was reported broken. The electricity utility received over 1,000 calls. Much of the damage was in south Bengaluru.

Apart from this, tree falls disrupted traffic movement in Sahakaranagar and Sultanpalya.

Thunderstorms are expected over the next few days, striking in the evening after a warm day. IMD officials said a trough of cyclonic circulation extending a vast area stretching from South Interior Karnataka to North Chhattisgarh remained and would see rains for the next 48 hours at least. “While there could be variations year on year, these thunder showers are a small-scale phenomenon. The weather could be sunny and warm and can suddenly turn cloudy,” said an official.

Two struck by lightning in Bagepalli

Two people were killed as lighting struck them at a village in Bagepalli taluk of Chickballapur district in the rain and hailstorm that lashed Kolar and Chickballapur districts on Monday evening.

The victims have been identified as Sadashiv, 45, and Narasimhappa, 70, residents of Ramanoddampalli. The tragedy struck when both of them were sitting near a temple in the village.