Chandigarh, 1 Dec:
The weather took a turn on Wednesday night and it started raining so early on Thursday morning that it continued till evening. Hail fell all over the city. The clouds kept thundering. The sound was so loud that even people got scared. The rain throughout the day broke all records till now. From roads to squares, everything was filled with water. The rain stopped at around 6:30 in the evening.
Heavy rain caused considerable damage. Trees fell in many areas including Sector-45, 19 and the road near the petrol pump in Sector-20 caved in, trapping many vehicles. They were taken out with great difficulty. The Municipal Corporation was working on the slip road here for the last several months. A few days ago, the road was opened by pouring soil on it, but due to rain on Thursday, the soil caved in. On complaint, the corporation sent JCB to level the soil. At the same time, lightning struck a person standing under a tree in Industrial Area Phase-2. It was fortunate that there was not much injury.
A huge pothole appeared on the roadside near Government House No. 800 at the small square of Sector-32/33. Roads and footpaths have sunk across the city wherever telecom companies have dug to lay cables. Kuljinder Saran, RWA of Sector-33B, said that earlier potholes were forming on the internal roads of the sectors, but due to the cable companies, the main roads have also started sinking. The situation was such that there was darkness on the roads around 11:30 in the morning. Drivers had to switch on the lights of their vehicles. Hail fell in the afternoon. People remained imprisoned in their homes the whole day. According to the Meteorological Center, normally there is 5.7 mm rainfall in the month of November but on Thursday, 39 mm rainfall occurred in the day alone. A total of 1 mm rainfall has occurred on the remaining days. At the same time, in the history of the month of November, till now there has been so much rain neither in a single day nor in the entire month. Meteorological Department Director Manmohan Singh says that the rain has occurred due to the active western disturbance. However, now there is no possibility of so much rain. The weather will clear in the coming days.
Police issued advisory
Due to torrential rains in the city on Thursday, Chandigarh Traffic Police issued an advisory for the people. People were informed on social media that waterlogging was occurring at many places. Waterlogging situation: Railway under bridge in CTU Workshop, Phase 1, Industrial Area, light point of Sector 20 and 30, road behind Sector 43 bus stand flooded. Due to heavy rains in the city, there was traffic jam on many important roads.
Air service also affected
Due to rain throughout the day on Thursday, air services at Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport, Chandigarh were affected. Many flights were delayed. At the same time, many flights arrived late. Due to this the passengers had to face problems. The pilot was given strict instructions not to take off until he got the green signal from ATC. Chandigarh Airport Chief Operating Officer Rakesh Ranjan Sahay said that the weather was bad on Thursday, which affected the flights.