Himachal: Orange alert issued for Monday, Tuesday; heavy rains expected

The local meteorological office has issued an orange alert for heavy to very heavy rainfall in isolated areas across four to nine out of twelve districts in Himachal Pradesh on Monday and Tuesday.

A yellow alert for heavy rainfall in isolated places has also been issued until Sunday.

Thunderstorms and lightning are also anticipated in Una, Bilaspur, Hamirpur, Kangra, Kullu, Mandi, Shimla, Solan, and Sirmaur on Monday, and in Kangra, Kullu, Mandi, and Sirmaur on Tuesday, the MeT stated.

The monsoon activity has been weak over the past 24 hours, resulting in light rainfall in a few areas of the state.

Hamirpur recorded 13.5 mm of rain since Friday night, followed by Karsog with 8.1 mm, Kasauli at 5 mm, Jubbarhatti at 4.8 mm, Kothi at 4 mm, Slapper at 3.9 mm, Shimla at 3.6 mm, Ghaghas at 3.4 mm, and Kufri at 3 mm.

As of Saturday evening, a total of 141 roads remain closed in the state. Additionally, 58 water supply schemes and 28 power distribution transformers have been affected, according to the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC).

The maximum number of road closures occurred in disaster-hit Mandi (94 roads) and Kullu (33 roads).

According to the State Emergency Operation Centre, since the onset of the monsoon on 20 June till 19 July, approximately 119 people have lost their lives — 70 due to rain-related incidents and 49 in road accidents. Around 225 individuals have been injured, and 34 are missing.

Himachal Pradesh has experienced 34 flash floods, 22 cloudbursts, and 21 landslides this monsoon season, resulting in losses of approximately Rs 1,234 crore, the department said.