Dust storm devastation
125 KILLED AS WILD WEATHER STRIKES STATES IN NORTH AND WEST INDIA
Lightning strikes and powerful dust storms across India have killed at least 125 people and injured more than 250 as meteorologists warned yesterday of more wild weather on the horizon.
Dust clouds plunged swathes of north India into darkness as winds of more than 130 km/h brought down feeble mud houses and killed people where they slept.
Walls, trees and electricity pylons were torn down in parts of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Punjab states where officials said the death toll was expected to rise. The destructive winds were followed by fierce lightning storms and rains.
Similar storms kill hundreds of people each year in India but these were some of the most severe in recent decades.
Shivam Lohia, who owns a resort hotel in Alwar district of Rajasthan, said he abandoned his car on the road and ran for his life after it was almost blown away. “I haven’t seen such a devastating storm in at least 25 years. Everyone was scared and running for cover as trees and homes were getting blown away. It was a nightmare,” Lohia told AFP.
There were 73 confirmed deaths in Uttar Pradesh in the north, 36 in the desert state of Rajasthan to the west, and two in Punjab from Wednesday’s wild storms. The day before, at least 14 were killed in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh which was hammered by more than 41,000 lightning strikes in a matter of hours, disaster officials said yesterday.
Agra district of Uttar Pradesh was one of the worst hit by the dust clouds, with more than 43 people killed. The Taj Mahal is in Agra city but officials said the monument escaped damage. Last month, a similar storm killed at least 15 people in Uttar Pradesh and destroyed two minarets over an entry house to the Taj Mahal.
Most of the victims were killed as they slept by houses that collapsed or by falling walls, trees and electric pylons, officials said. Many people in India sleep outside during the summer months to escape the high temperatures.
Aheavy dust storm swept across parts of India on Wednesday, wreaking havoc in Uttar Pradesh (UP), Rajasthan, Punjab and Haryana, killing over 100 people and leaving a trail of destruction.
In UP, the dust storm left 68 people dead and 55 injured. Agra district was the worst hit, accounting for 36 deaths. In Rajasthan, 36 people were killed and about 100 injured.
Houses collapsed and poles and trees were uprooted in the storm that led to power outages in UP. The state government has sounded an alert for the next 48 hours.
UP state shief secretary Rajive Kumar also issued directions for immediate distribution of relief to the affected in Agra.
“The chief secretary has spoken to commissioner of Agra division and directed him that relief be distributed by the evening and senior officers visit the injured in hospitals,” principal secretary (Information) Avanish Awasthi told mediapersons.
Election heat
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who is campaigning for Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the upcoming legislative assembly elections in Karnataka, asked officials to “personally” monitor relief work.
Taking a dig at Adityanath, Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said the CM was busy electioneering “elsewhere” when a dust storm killed so many people in his state.
In Rajasthan, chief minister Vasundhara Raje declared a compensation of Rs400,000 (Dh22,000) for families of those killed.
The storm caused major destruction in Alwar district of Rajasthan where hundreds of trees were uprooted, many of which fell on stationary vehicles.
Alwar’s collector Rajan Vishal confirmed three deaths.
Secretary of Disaster Management and Relief Hemant Kumar Gera informed Gulf News that about 120 persons were injured in the storm.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also offered his condolences to families of victims.
In Odisha, at least three persons were killed and several others injured due to the impact of the storm, accompanied by rain and hail.
The storm swept across Delhi too, but no damage was reported.
In Uttarakhand, two people were killed in thunderstorms.
Normal life was also hit in many places in Punjab and Haryana. In Patiala, two people were killed during a thunderstorm.