Two killed as heavy rain lashes Himachal, state incurs Rs 78-lakh damage in 24 hours

Flash floods triggered by a cloudburst in Himachal Pradesh's Solan and Hamirpur districts and heavy rain in Shimla, Mandi and Kullu on Sunday killed two people, damaged crops, homes and vehicles, and washed away livestock.

According to the State Emergency Operation Centre on Sunday, one person drowned in Hamirpur and Shimla district each. The rain also damaged 11 houses and vehicles each as well as four cowsheds.

The state suffered estimated losses of Rs 78 lakh in the past 24 hours, it said.

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Three houses were damaged in Lahaul and Spiti, five in Hamirpur, two in Solan and one in Mandi. Eight vehicles were damaged in Kullu, two in Lahaul and Spiti and one in Sirmaur.

Uprooted trees blocked traffic on 126 roads, including two national highways. Power supply was also disrupted as 141 transformers suffered damage, emergency centre officials said.

Following the cloudburst, water gushed into four homes and also damaged the panchayat building in the Kheri area of Sujanpur subdivision of Hamirpur district.

According to the latest information, six people are trapped by the waters of the Beas near the Khanuali village and machinery worth lakhs of the Dhaulasidh Power Project have been washed away due to heavy flow of water in the river.

This area is located on the river's left bank.

A spokesperson said home guards, police and Indian Reserve Battalion teams have rushed to the spot to rescue the trapped people.

About 35 goats were washed away following a cloudburst at Mahaal Mangal Kathpol in the Arki subdivision of Solan district, the emergency centre officials added.

Close to 100 people in 40 vehicles were stuck near Chowari in Chamba district as a landslide blocked Jot Road. Work to resume traffic on the road has been started and excavators have been deployed to clear the debris, the officials said.

Heavy to very heavy rainfall lashed isolated parts of Mandi district while heavy rain was witnessed in parts of Shimla and Sirmaur districts. Most places in the state witnessed light to moderate rainfall in the last 24 hours.

In Kullu, five cars and three tractors parked in the Mohal Khud area were damaged.

In Mandi, two people were injured while one house collapsed and two were partially destroyed. Two cars were also damaged.

The rain also wreaked havoc in the Sarpara area of Rampur subdivision of Shimla district on Saturday night, damaging a water supply line, a cowshed and several farms.

According to data from the weather office, Sarkaghat in Mandi district was the wettest place in Himachal, receiving 130 mm rainfall. Dhaulakuan received 103 mm rainfall, followed by Sundernagar and Baldwara at 92 mm each and Nahan 80 mm.

The Met office has cautioned about the possibility of flash floods in Kangra, Mandi, Shimla, Sirmaur, Chamba and Kullu and damage to standing crops, fruit plants and seedlings.

It has also issued a 'yellow' alert for heavy rain, thunderstorm and lightning at isolated places on June 26 and thunderstorms coupled with lightning from June 27-29.

The Chabba water supply scheme in Shimla has been affected due to the discharge of 150 cusecs from the Nathpa dam, damaging the submersible pumps and the inlet pipe. The Chabba pump house has also gone under water, Shimla Jal Prabandhan Nigam officials said.

Water sources have been loaded with heavy silt, the turbidity is high in the Giri and Gumma supply schemes, they said, and added that supply will be hit for the next few days.

The administration has appealed to the people not to venture out during the rain and avoid visiting river tributaries as they were in spate due to the huge rush of water.