SRINAGAR: Several vehicles were buried and swathes of agricultural land were damaged after a fresh cloudburst struck Bilaspur district in Himachal Pradesh during the early hours of Saturday, officials confirmed, according to multiple media reports.
The incident, as per NDTV report occurred in Gutrahan village, located in the Namhol area of the Naina Devi assembly constituency. According to local resident Kashmir Singh, “Gushing waters along with debris swept away agricultural lands.”
The cloudburst also triggered heavy debris flow, leading to extensive damage to parked vehicles in the vicinity. However no casualties have been reported so far.
Meanwhile, dense fog enveloped the state capital, Shimla, on Saturday morning, reducing visibility to just a few metres. Commuters, particularly during school hours, experienced significant disruption.
The Meteorological Department has issued a yellow warning for heavy rainfall in isolated parts of the state for Saturday and Sunday.
As of Friday evening, 503 roads—including key national highways such as the Attari-Leh (NH-3), Aut-Sainj (NH-305), and Amritsar-Bhota (NH-503A)—remained closed to traffic. Additionally, 953 power transformers and 336 water supply schemes have been affected due to recent floods and landslides, according to the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC).
Since the onset of the monsoon on 20 June, the state has recorded 386 fatalities due to rain-related incidents and road accidents. Of these, 218 deaths were directly linked to weather events, while 168 resulted from vehicular accidents.
The state government estimates the total loss incurred this monsoon season at Rs 4,465 crore, as reported by The Hindu.
Meteorological data indicate that Himachal Pradesh received 967.2 mm of rainfall between 1 June and 12 September—43 per cent above the average of 678.4 mm.
