Sudden dust storm uproots trees, snaps power supply

Time of India

21 hours ago

Indore: A sudden dust storm accompanied by strong winds and rain lashed Indore on Thursday evening, toppling hundreds of trees, damaging vehicles, and causing widespread power outages.
The storm, which struck around 4:30 pm, brought relief from the sweltering heat but also left a trail of destruction across several areas of the city.
The worst-hit areas included regions along Ring Road, MG Road near Mrignayanee, Bengali Square, and the Khajrana temple locality. In many locations, electricity poles were snapped by the gusty winds, leading to power cuts in several neighbourhoods. Following the storm, the Indore Municipal Corporation's disaster management and horticulture teams swung into action.
According to the IMC control room, complaints of tree falls were received from at least 21 locations, all of which were promptly attended to.
IMC officials worked through the evening to clear fallen trees from roads and restore traffic flow.
Despite partially cloudy weather, hot winds continued to blow across the city as the day temperature stood at 41.6 degrees Celsius for the second day consecutively. Following gusty winds and light rainfall at isolated places, the evening temperature dropped to 33.4 degrees Celsius, which was 40 degrees Celsius on Wednesday.
The minimum temperature was recorded at 26.6 degrees Celsius, which was two degrees above normal.
Meanwhile, in Mhow, roofs of nearly 10 thatched houses were blown away by the storm.
On Thursday, Ujjain recorded the highest temperature at 43.5°C, followed by Ratlam at 43.2°C, Dhar at 42.4°C, Indore at 41.6°C, Khargone at 41.2°C, and Khandwa at 39.1°C. This persistent heat and humidity have made daily life extremely uncomfortable for residents.
The sudden change in weather comes amid an ongoing heatwave. For the past nine days, day temperatures in Indore have been climbing steadily, with oppressive heat and humidity dominating June's second week.
Interestingly, this year May felt more like June, and June has taken on the extreme characteristics usually seen in peak summer.
"The temperatures are expected to remain similar for the next 24 hours and temperatures would fall thereafter as rainfall distribution is expected to increase from June 14," said Arun Sharma, Met scientist from IMD Bhopal.
The India Meteorological Department has forecast the revival of the southwest monsoon in Madhya Pradesh within the next two to three days. The monsoon, currently stalled over Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh, is expected to advance by June 14-15.
The Met Department has also issued alerts for thunderstorms with lightning and winds reaching 40–50 km/h in isolated parts of Indore, Dewas, Dhar, and surrounding districts on Friday. Heatwave warnings remain in place for Ratlam, Ujjain, Neemuch, and Agar.
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