Monsoon advances to most parts of Himachal Pradesh; man died in lightning strike

Shimla/Dharamshala (HP): A man died in Himachal Pradesh's Kangra district after being struck by lightning as monsoon covered most parts of the state, causing rains at a few places and the weather department warning of heavy rain at isolated places over the next four days.

Vijay Kumar (46) died after being hit by lightning in Dadhamb village while working in the fields along with locals, an official said, adding the man was rushed to the Shahpur hospital where doctors declared him dead.

The state witnessed scattered showers, with Kangra gauging 37 mm of rain, Kasauli 3 mm, Mandi 21.8 mm, Jot 21 mm, Murari Devi 13 mm, Hamirpur 7.5 mm and Shimla and Sundernagar 3.6 mm each.

Una was hottest at 34.4 degrees Celsius, three notches below the normal, followed by Bahaura at 33.2 degrees Celsius, Bhuntar at 32.6 degrees Celsius and Neri at 31.9 degrees Celsius.

The minimum temperatures stayed marginally above normal at most places, with Kukumseri recording a low of 12.2 degrees Celsius, Paonta Sahib 27 degrees Celsius and Bilaspur 26 degrees Celsius.

The local meteorological office issued an orange alert for heavy to very heavy rain at isolated places in the state over the next four days.

It said light to moderate rainfall was very likely at many places from June 24 to 28, with one or two spells of heavy rains and very heavy rains at isolated places from June 23 to 27.

Pointing out that heavy rainfall could cause landslides and mudslides at vulnerable places and partially damage structures, the MeT office advised people to avoid going to vulnerable areas and follow traffic advisories.

It also cautioned both tourists and locals to avoid waterlogged areas, riverbanks, and landslide-prone zones, stating that water levels in rivers may rise rapidly following heavy downpours.