Gujarat Braces for Uncharacteristic Rain-Related Calamity
Tragedy strikes as Gujarat, a region unaccustomed to torrential downpours during the winter months, suffers the loss of twenty-four lives due to lightning strikes and rain-related incidents. The state has also seen 23 injuries over the last 48 hours as relentless rains persist into Monday morning.
Gujarat was pounded by heavy rainfall, thunderstorms, and hailstorms on Sunday and Monday, leading to some areas receiving as much as 144mm (5.7 inches) of rain within a 24-hour period ending Monday morning, according to government data.
Dwellings were ravaged, and livestock perished across the state, with at least 40 animals losing their lives. “We will soon conduct a survey to gauge the extent of the damage,” shared Gujarat Agriculture Minister Raghavji Patel on Monday, emphasizing that compensations will be disbursed based on the survey findings.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has anticipated continued rainfall in certain regions of the state throughout Monday.
Expressing profound grief over the fatalities, Federal Home Minister Amit Shah, a native of Gujarat, took to X to convey his heartfelt condolences.
While Gujarat is no stranger to monsoon-related crises, the magnitude of this winter deluge has bewildered many, as such colossal rainstorms are atypical for the season.
In August 2020, Gujarat witnessed 14 casualties in just two days due to heavy rains and flooding. A year earlier, in August 2019, 31 people lost their lives in rain-related incidents.
Although flash floods and lightning strikes claim numerous lives in India annually, researchers caution that escalating global temperatures are triggering a series of unprecedented extreme weather phenomena.
