Snow-covered road at the Atal Tunnel Rohtang South Portal during snowfall, in Manali district, Saturday, March 30, 2024.
Credit: PTI Photo
Shimla: Higher reaches and tribal areas of Himachal Pradesh received a fresh spell of snow while low and middle hills were lashed by intermittent hailstorm and moderate rains on Saturday.
The MeT office has predicted a wet spell in the state till April 4, barring April 1.
A Himachal Roadways Transport Corporation (HRTC) bus on Saturday morning turned turtle near Maling in Kinnaur district after skidding in the snow, authorities said. No casualty was reported.
Incidents of wind blowing roofs were reported from Solan district and trees falling on vehicles from Sirmaur district, they said.
Traffic came to a halt at the Atal Tunnel in Rohtang near Manali following heavy snow.
Gondla in Lahaul and Spiti received 15 cm of snow followed by Kalpa 10 cm, and Kothi and Kukumseri, each of which received 5 cm of it, in the past 24 hours.
A total of 172 roads, including four national highways, have been closed for vehicular traffic in the state since Friday night, according to the state emergency operation centre.
Most of these roads are in difficult terrain of Lahaul and Spiti.
A total of 662 transformers are out of order in the state. Intermittent rain accompanied by lightning and gusty wind were witnessed in the state' capital Shimla and some other places. A hailstorm made commuting difficult in Solan.
The Local MeT office has issued an 'orange warning' with thunderstorms accompanied by lightning, hail, heavy rain and gusty wind (40-50 kmph) at places in seven out of 12 districts of the state.