One killed as thundershowers, heavy  winds wreak havoc in Hyderabad

The state government announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh to the family of the deceased.
An uprooted tree falls on an auto rickshaw during a heavy downpour, in Hyderabad on Saturday | Express
An uprooted tree falls on an auto rickshaw during a heavy downpour, in Hyderabad on Saturday | Express

HYDERABAD: Thundershowers and gusting winds wreaked havoc in the old city of Hyderabad on Saturday, claiming the life of a 60-year-old woman. The unfortunate incident happened when a heavy branch broke off from a tree at Nehru Zoological Park near Bahadurpura here and fell on her.

The woman, identified as Nikhat Sultana, a resident of Manikonda, was sitting under a tree in the zoo when the mishap occurred. The state government announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh to the family of the deceased.

While the zoo witnessed chaotic scenes, with power lines being damaged and pathways being blocked, most parts of the Greater Hyderabad experienced light rains measuring less than 10 mm. Charminar received 30.8 mm of rain in just an hour, with gusting winds causing much damage.

Various parts of the old city witnessed water-logging and uprooting of trees and electric poles, causing traffic congestion. Power outages were also reported at different parts of the city.

Similar weather till Monday

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), thunderstorms accompanied by a hailstorm, gusting winds and lightning are very likely to occur at isolated places across Telangana on Sunday. This weather is expected to continue on Monday too, without hailstorms, though.

The Nehru Zoological Park, near Bahadurpura in the city, saw gusting winds knock down a few trees, with broken branches falling all across the premises, damaging power lines and pathways, and forcing visitors to run for cover. The staff of the zoo evacuated visitors using battery-operated vehicles and safari buses.
The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) received an influx of complaints, as the water was stagnated at over 18 places and at least 47 trees were uprooted.

In Falaknuma, six electric poles were uprooted by the wind. Falaknuma, Bahadurpura, Charminar, Hussainialam, Shah Ali Banda, Mughalpura and Mishrigunj were among the areas affected by the thundershowers.

Services at the Miyapur Metro Rail station were halted for 15 minutes as power had to be shut down after a flex board fell on the metro overhead line. This caused a huge crowd of passengers at the station. The Metro Rail’s signalling system was also disrupted at Miyapur and a few other places due to the gusting winds and thundershowers. Power outages were reported in Yakuthpura, Ghoshamahal, Putlibowli, Khilwath, Moosarambagh, Maakpet, Patherghatti and Barkas.

Meanwhile, light rains and thundershowers accompanied by gusting winds were also experienced in other parts of the state such as Ranga Reddy, Medchal, Jangaon, Warangal, Nalgonda, Suryapet, Siddipet, Sircilla, Karimnagar and Jagtial districts. The highest rainfall recorded in the state on Saturday was 39 mm in Ghanpur, and 36 mm in Kandukur.

Related Stories

No stories found.
The New Indian Express
www.newindianexpress.com