Three killed as flash flood wreaks havoc in Himachal’s Mandi

The flash flood inundated roads and houses in the Jail Road area, sweeping away three people, and injuring one. Debris blocked the roads and several vehicles were left stranded. The incident occurred at around 3.30 am on Tuesday

Three people were killed when a cloudburst triggered a flash flood in Mandi town of Himachal Pradesh early morning on Tuesday, officials said.

Blocked Mandi-Kullu strech of NH on Tuesday. (HT Photo)

The flash flood inundated roads and houses in the Jail Road area, sweeping away three people, and injuring one. Debris blocked the roads and several vehicles were left stranded. The incident occurred at around 3.30 am on Tuesday.

The three deceased included a mother and son. The deceased were identified as Balbir Singh, son of Krishan Singh, Amarpreet Singh and his mother Sapna, son and wife of Darshan Singh, who also sustained injuries and is admitted to Mandi Zonal Hospital, an official said. All three victims belonged to the same family. According to locals, they had gone out to move their auto-rickshaw amid heavy rain when they were swept away by the flash flood.

Officials said that the heavy rainfall has caused severe destruction in areas like Jail Road, Hospital Road, Sain Mohalla, and nearby residential areas. Water and debris entered many homes along the Skodi Khad, rendering several houses unsafe.

The heavy rainfall prompted the Mandi sadar sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) to order the closure of all schools in the area as a precautionary measure on Tuesday.

Mandi district continues to reel under the impact of cloudbursts, flash floods, and landslides triggered by incessant rain this monsoon. Fifteen people were killed on June 30 when several cloudbursts occurred at multiple locations in Mandi district. More than 1,100 houses have been damaged in the district this monsoon.

In 2024, cloudbursts had wreaked havoc in Mandi’s Padhar on the night of July 31 claiming many lives. During a recent meeting with the multi-sectoral central team, constituted by the ministry of home affairs, special secretary (revenue and disaster management) DC Rana had shared that Himachal has witnessed 148 cloudbursts, 294 flash floods and over 5,000 landslides since 2018. Of all districts, Kullu, Lahaul-Spiti, Kinnaur and Mandi are extremely vulnerable to such events.

With climate change being one of the reasons, the experts have also pointed to unchecked construction, flawed development models, and ecological disregard, a leading reason for the recent extreme weather events in the hill-state.

Dist administration directed to provide all possible assistance: Sukhu

Chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said: “The district administration has been directed to provide all possible assistance to the affected families and wished speedy recovery to the injured. The state government is standing in solidarity with affected families in this hour of distress and would make all possible efforts to provide them timely relief.”

Taking to social media, Mandi MP Kangana Ranaut, said, “The torrential rain that struck the Mandi city last night has caused widespread destruction and suffering. My heartfelt condolences are with the grieving families. Many vehicles are buried under debris, and homes have suffered severe damage. These heartbreaking conditions have shaken the entire region. I am in constant communication with the administration – relief and rescue operations are being prioritised.”

Former Himachal chief minister and Leader of Opposition in the state assembly, Jai Ram Thakur, visited the affected areas of Mandi town. Speaking to the media, he said, “For the past few years, heavy rainfall during the monsoon has been causing widespread destruction. This year too, the rains have left a trail of devastation in Mandi. The recurring damage caused by rainfall is a matter of concern for the entire state. The government must provide immediate relief to the affected families.”

Himachal PWD minister Vikramaditya Singh, said, “The public works department is working with full strength at ground zero. We stand with the people of Himachal in every sorrow.” Vikramaditya will visit Mandi on July 30 to take stock of the situation.

Mandi-Kullu highway blocked, more showers expected

As heavy rainfall caused landslides at various locations in Himachal Pradesh, the Mandi-Kullu stretch of Chandigarh-Manali National Highway (NH-21) remained blocked at multiple locations on Tuesday.

The stretch was blocked at 4 Mile, 9 Mile (near Pandoh) and Dwara (near Aut). Due to the highway closure vehicles were stranded along the roadside at several locations, leaving hundreds of people stuck.

The Mandi-Jogindernagar stretch of NH-154 was also blocked for hours due to a landslide near Lawandi bridge. Mandi-Kotli stretch of NH-003 also was blocked on Tuesday morning.

As many as 357 roads remained blocked in Himachal on Tuesday, with 259 roads blocked in Mandi district alone. While 47 roads remained blocked in Kullu district, 24 roads were blocked in Kangra district.

Orange alert in four districts for today

With the spells of heavy rainfall expected to continue in coming days, the India Meteorological Department’s (IMD) Shimla office has sounded an orange alert of heavy to very heavy rainfall in Chamba, Kangra, Mandi and Kullu districts on July 30 (Wednesday). Four other districts will be under a yellow alert of heavy rainfall.

According to MeT department officials, light to moderate rainfall is very likely at most places on July 30 and August 4 and at many places from July 31 to August 3. One or two spells of heavy rainfall are also expected at isolated places till July 31 and very heavy rainfall on July 30.

During the last 24 hours, monsoon activity was active over the state. While light to moderate rainfall was recorded at most places, heavy to extremely heavy rainfall was observed at isolated places.

The highest rainfall of 21 cm was recorded in Sandhole in Mandi district, followed by Mandi (20 cm), Pandoh (12 cm), Kataula (9 cm), Dehra Gopipur (7 cm), Nadaun (7 cm), Baldwara (6 cm), Chuari (5 cm), Amb (5 cm), Palampur (5 cm), Naina Devi (5 cm), Paonta (4 cm), Sundernagar (4 cm), Sarahan (3 cm), Karsog (3 cm), Dharamshala (3 cm), Banjar (2 cm), Kufri (2 cm), Shimla (2 cm) and Kangra (1 cm).