Strong winds hit Delhi half-an-hour before midnight on Monday, May 7th. Following warnings from the met department, schools have declared a holiday in the afternoon and the police are on alert. The bad weather is expected to extend across 20 states, which are on alert following last week’s dust storm, which claimed more than 120 lives across five states.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecasted thunderstorms and gusty winds in the capital for the next 48 hours. According to the IMD weather office, we can only expect the storm to clear up by May 9.
Just in case you get caught in the storm, here’s a few things to keep in mind!
- Do not stay inside cars or take shelter under a tree during the storm as the wind speed can be 50-60 kmph.
- The met department has issued warnings about thunderstorms and squalls across 20 states: Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Bihar, Assam, Meghalaya, West Bengal, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Sikkim, Odisha, Telangana, north Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The wind speed in these states is likely to remain between 50 and 70 km per hour, the met department said.
- Avoid driving into or through a dust storm.
- Secure outside objects that could blow away and cause damage.
- Unplug all electrical equipment. Don’t use corded telephones.
- Don’t touch plumbing and metal pipes. Do not use running water.
- Don’t use metallic objects; stay away from power/telephone lines.
- Stay away from structures with tin roofs/metal sheeting.
- Get out of water, pools, lakes, small boats on water bodies and take safe shelter immediately.
- Keep a watch on local weather updates and warnings.
While precautions are being taken citywide, with the government shutting all schools for today and metro exercising caution, the met department said the impact of the storm this time will be less than that of last week. Search and rescue teams have been put on standby in every district of Delhi.
Till then, stay safe Delhi!
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