Bihar Faces Severe Weather Changes Amid Heatwave Relief
Weather Update in Bihar
Photo: @ians_india/X
Patna, May 1: Recently, Bihar has been grappling with extreme heatwave conditions, with temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celsius in various districts, making daily life challenging. Fortunately, a sudden shift in weather has brought cooler temperatures to many areas of the state.
The Meteorological Centre attributes this change to the beginning of pre-monsoon activities.
Moist winds from the Bay of Bengal, along with a Western Disturbance, have led to atmospheric instability over Bihar.
This has resulted in light rain, thunderstorms, lightning, and strong winds across several districts, a trend expected to persist until May 3.
Despite the overall temperature drop, Kaimur district remains the hottest, recording a maximum of 33.3 degrees Celsius.
Gaya and Rajgir reported temperatures of 33.2 and 33.0 degrees Celsius, respectively.
While these numbers reflect a decrease from previous highs, the residual heat is still noticeable.
In Patna, overcast skies are anticipated, with chances of light rain and gusty winds.
The Meteorological Department has issued a Yellow Alert for thunderstorms and rain across 33 districts, warning of wind speeds that could reach 40 km/h.
However, this abrupt weather change has come with severe consequences. Intense storms, heavy rainfall, and hail that hit Bihar from Wednesday night to Thursday resulted in widespread devastation, claiming 13 lives across various districts, including Muzaffarpur, Madhubani, East Champaran, West Champaran, Sitamarhi, Samastipur, Darbhanga, Hajipur, Chhapra, and Begusarai. Numerous injuries were also reported.
Strong winds caused trees, electricity poles, and power lines to fall, leading to extensive power outages affecting both urban and rural areas throughout the night.
Blocked roads due to fallen trees disrupted traffic for hours, and railway services were also affected in several regions.
Agricultural losses were significant, particularly for mango and litchi crops, which suffered damage from hail and strong winds.
Several tragic incidents have been reported since Wednesday evening.
In Begusarai, a young man died when a wall of a newly-built structure collapsed on him.
A six-year-old child in Hajipur lost their life due to a falling tree.
In Marhaura, an elderly woman was killed in a similar incident.
In Aurangabad, 50-year-old Akshay Ram was struck by lightning while attending a wedding.
In Madhubani, six individuals were injured by lightning, with two fatalities reported from lightning strikes and falling trees.
In West Champaran, two deaths occurred—one from a falling tree and another when an e-rickshaw overturned.
Deaths were also reported in Darbhanga (2), Muzaffarpur (2), and Samastipur (1) due to collapsing trees during the storm.
Moreover, hailstorms and lightning caused extensive damage in several districts, including Sitamarhi, where houses caught fire due to lightning strikes.