Cloudburst hits Himachal Pradesh Rampur’s Jhakri; 20 people missing

Shimla, August 1

Over 20 people are missing following a cloudburst at Samej Khud in Himachal Pradesh Rampur’s Jhakri. The officials have rushed to the spot to initiate a rescue operation.

The cloudburst hit the area last night.

The regional Met office has issued an 'orange' alert for heavy to very heavy rain, accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning, in isolated places of all Himachal Pradesh districts, barring Kinnaur and Lahaul & Spiti, for Thursday.

A 'yellow' alert was also issued on Wednesday for heavy rain at isolated places from Friday. The wet spell in the state is predicted to last till August 6.

The Met office has four colour-coded warnings -- green (no action needed), yellow (watch and stay updated), orange (be prepared) and red (take action).

The weather office also warned of the possibility of landslides and flash floods in vulnerable areas of Kullu, Solan, Sirmaur, Shimla and Kinnaur districts and damage to plantations and standing crops, vulnerable structures and kutcha houses due to strong winds and waterlogging in low-lying areas.

Meanwhile, intermittent rain continued in parts of Himachal Pradesh during the day.