One killed, 13 injured in thunderstorm that hit Delhi-NCR on Wednesday early morning; IMD issues alert

NEW DELHI At least one person was killed and 13 hurt in the strong winds, accompanied by dust that hit Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR) early Wednesday morning in the early hours of Wednesday.

An 18-year-old Sohail of Gokal Puri area was killed after a wall of his house collapsed on him, said media reports. Among the 13 injured are four members of his family. The police received nearly 60 calls related to uprooted trees, fallen electricity polls and wall collapses across the region.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a thunderstorm alert after a massive dust storm hit Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR) early Wednesday morning. Strong winds, accompanied by dust, lashed Delhi-NCR while lower the temperature. Delhi-NCR and adjoining areas also witnessed light rain in early morning hours on Wednesday (16.05.2018).

The IMD has stated that areas of Jind, Rohtak, Panipat, Alwar, Bagpat, Meerut and Aligarh may witness light rain with thunderstorm.

On Tuesday evening, the India Meteorological Department had issued a fresh warning for heavy rains and thunderstorm to hit the region in the later part of the evening. On Tuesday, the IMD had forecasted that the wind speeds could reach approximately 74 km per hour.

The India Meteorological Department has also predicted that Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh would witness thunderstorm accompanied by a squall in the next few days.

Thunderstorms, dust storms, rainfall during summers have been a normal phenomenon in northern India. “But not of this severity. The frequency of western disturbance is unusually high,” Mahesh Pahlawat, vice-president (Meteorology and Climate Change) at Skymet, told The Indian Express.

Earlier, dust storms and thunderstorms had wreaked havoc in Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and the national capital, killing at least 51 people and leaving behind a massive trail of destruction.

Uttar Pradesh witnessed thunderstorm and hail that left at least 18 people dead, while 12 people including four children were killed in West Bengal, nine in Andhra Pradesh, and two in Delhi, officials said.

At several places in north India including Delhi, high-velocity winds uprooted trees and affected road, rail and air services.