Himachal Pradesh: IMD forecasts rain, hailstorms across State for next three days

Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) [India], May 5 (ANI): Over the last 24 hours, various parts of Himachal Pradesh have experienced rain, thunderstorms, lightning, and hailstorms. This bout of extreme weather comes after nearly three consecutive days of unstable conditions affecting almost all districts, including rainfall, hail, and snowfall in higher altitudes. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted that this wet spell will continue for the next three days.
A weather alert has been issued by the IMD for rain, hailstorms, thunderstorms, and lightning across most districts of Himachal Pradesh, with Lahaul-Spiti being the only exception.
"In the last 24 hours, light to moderate rain has been recorded in most parts of Himachal Pradesh. Hailstorms have also been reported from a few areas," said Sandeep Kumar Sharma, Senior Scientist at the Meteorological Centre, Shimla, while speaking to ANI.
He added that Bilaspur received the highest rainfall with 74 mm, followed by Kandaghat in Solan district with 67 mm. Hailstorms were reported in Shimla and Kasauli, and strong winds were recorded at several stations.

Looking ahead, the IMD forecast indicates the possibility of light to moderate rain in the plains and mid-hill regions from May 5 to May 8, while higher reaches are likely to witness snowfall. These weather activities are expected to persist over the next 4 to 5 days.
Additionally, night-time thunderstorms and gusty winds are likely between May 5 and May 9, particularly in Chamba, Kangra, Una, Bilaspur, and Hamirpur districts. Isolated hailstorms are expected in Shimla, Kullu, Mandi, Solan, Sirmaur, and Kangra. In view of this, alerts have been issued for May 5 and 6.
After May 9, a decrease in weather activity is anticipated. However, light rain may still occur in a few places in the mid-hill districts on May 10 and 11.
In terms of temperature, Una recorded the highest maximum temperature at 35.2 degrees Celsius, while Keylong in Lahaul-Spiti reported the lowest minimum temperature at 4.2 degrees Celsius. Overall, temperatures across Himachal Pradesh have been 2 to 3 degrees Celsius below normal.
In Shimla, the daytime temperature was around 22degrees Celsius, which is 2 degrees below normal. In Solan, the maximum temperature was 30degrees Celsius, which is a significant 10 degrees below normal, while Mandi recorded 27.8degrees Celsius, about 5 degrees below average.
Weather conditions are expected to become active again from this evening, with increased cloud cover and consistently lower-than-average temperatures expected to persist.
According to IMD data, rainfall for the month of May so far has been 22% above normal across the state. However, some districts, including Kullu and Lahaul-Spiti, have received below-average rainfall, while six districts have recorded above-normal rainfall, and the rest are close to average.
The IMD has maintained a hailstorm alert for May 5 and 6 in districts including Shimla, Kangra, and Mandi. Thunderstorms are expected to continue across the state (excluding Lahaul-Spiti) over the next five days, with intermittent clear weather periods. However, light to moderate rainfall will persist in many areas, and gusty winds may occur in some districts. (ANI)