Himachal Pradesh closes 67 roads as heavy rains trigger weather alert

A total of 67 roads across Himachal Pradesh have been closed to vehicular movement as light to moderate rainfall continues to batter various regions of the state. The Shimla Meteorological Office issued a yellow weather warning on Friday, alerting residents to the possibility of heavy rains in isolated pockets from August 31 through September 3.

The road closures span multiple districts, with Mandi bearing the brunt at 27 shuttered routes, followed by Kullu with 16 roads. Kangra, Sirmaur, Una, Chamba, and Shimla account for seven, six, four, and three closures respectively, while Lahaul and Spiti district has one road closed. The state emergency operations centre also reported that 12 power transformers have been damaged or obstructed by the adverse weather.

Rainfall across the state has been significant in recent days. Between Thursday evening and Friday, Nahan recorded 51 millimetres of precipitation, with Berthin, Dhaulakuan, Dharamshala, Naina Devi, and Guler receiving 34.8, 34.5, 30.3, 28.2, and 20.1 millimetres respectively. Over the August 1-28 period, the state accumulated 203.8 millimetres of rainfall against a normal expectation of 241.4 millimetres, representing a 14 per cent deficit for the period.

Since the monsoon onset on June 30, the state has experienced considerable weather-related hardship, with approximately 103 fatalities reported in rain-related incidents across Himachal Pradesh.