Uttarakhand: Red alert in 6 districts, Heavy downpours expected today

As monsoon fury still continues in Uttarakhand, a red alert has been sounded for heavy rains in six districts, including Dehradun and Nainital for Monday (August 14) by Indian Meteorological Department (IMD).

The hill state has been witnessing incessant showers that have left 60 people dead and 17 missing while affecting normal life.

IMD predicts heavy rains in Uttarakhand today

According to the weather agency, intense to very heavy rain with thunder and lightning at isolated places has been forecast for two days in Tehri, Dehradun, Pauri, Champawat, Nainital and Udham Singh Nagar districts where the red alert has been sounded, while Haridwar district is under orange alert.

Taking notes from the situation, the state government has directed their district magistrate and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) to remain alert in order to help and assist the people in case of any emergency.

Moreover, several schools in Dehradun and Champawat are shut today due to heavy downpours in the state.

Landslides triggered by incessant rains have blocked traffic on various roads, including national highways, affecting the movement of people and claiming lives of the people, the authorities said.

Rishikesh-Chamba National Highway was blocked for traffic due to a landslide near Kunjapuri Bagardhar in Tehri while the movement of heavy vehicles has been stopped on Rishikesh-Devprayag-Srinagar National Highways at Sakhnidhar.

60 killed, 37 injured so far in monsoon fury

As per a survey by the State Emergency Operation Center, over 60 people were killed, 37 were injured and 17 people are still missing so far in various incidents during this Monsoon fury.

Apart from this, almost 1,169 houses were damaged and a huge amount of agricultural land was washed away amid the destruction caused by heavy downpours in the hill state. Further, roads and bridges also suffered a lot of damage.

IMD issues a red alert for extremely bad weather conditions that are certainly going to disrupt travel and power and pose a significant risk to life, while an orange alert indicates extremely bad weather with the potential of disruption in commute with road and drain closures and interruption of power supply.