Delhi-NCR Storm Havoc: 4 Killed, 200+ Flights Affected With Torrential Rain and Dust Storm

New Delhi, May 2:
A massive torrential rain, fierce gusts, and dust storms hit Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) with fury on Thursday morning, claiming the life of four individuals and disrupting air and rail travel severely.

In a tragic accident, a woman and her three kids lost their lives after a giant tree fell on their makeshift shelter in the Dwarka sector of Delhi. The accident took place as the city was experiencing strong winds, which uprooted a number of trees and caused extensive damage throughout the capital.

The adverse weather had a cascading impact on aviation, with over 200 flights delayed and at least three diverted to Jaipur and Ahmedabad. Among them were Bangalore-Delhi and Pune-Delhi flights, which were rerouted due to poor visibility and stormy conditions at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport.

As per aviation tracking website FlightRadar, Delhi airport saw 21-minute average delays for arrivals and 61-minute average delays for departures. Airlines like Air India released advisories requesting passengers to check flight status prior to travel. “We are trying our best to reduce the disruptions,” Air India stated in an X statement.

Rail services were not exempted either. Around 15 to 20 trains were delayed as trees toppled over overhead cables, halting services in the Delhi division. There was waterlogging in many parts of the city, such as Minto Road, Lajpat Nagar, South Extension Ring Road, and Moti Bagh, contributing to the traffic mess on roads.

India Meteorological Department (IMD) gave wind speed measurements of a high of up to 70–80 km/h and raised an alert level at yellow until Saturday. Heavy three-hour rains have been logged in the country: Safdarjung (77 mm), Lodhi Road (78 mm), Palam (30 mm), Najafgarh (19.5 mm), and Pitampura (32 mm).

The turbulent weather is a temporary respite from the increasing heat, with temperatures falling to 19.8°C this morning. The maximum temperature was just one day ago at 38.1°C, marginally less than the season average.

In the future, the IMD predicts more-than-normal rainfall in north India during May, with the possibility of frequent thunderstorms preventing temperatures from rising to last year’s heights.