Hyderabad: As rain brings down mercury, relief from heat amid power cuts, traffic snarls

As the rain intensified, Hyderabad Traffic Police's official handle on X advised people to drive carefully given the inclement weather.

BySouth First Desk

Published May 07, 2024 | 9:30 PMUpdatedMay 08, 2024 | 2:31 AM

People venture out in the rain in Hyderabad on Tuesday, 7 May, 2024.

The weather in Hyderabad experienced a marked improvement on the afternoon and evening of Tuesday, 7 May. Rain in various parts of the city brought down temperatures, leading people to heave a sigh of relief.

The city began experiencing light drizzles late in the afternoon. It turned into a downpour — even hailstorms and thunderstorms in some areas — by the evening.

As the rain intensified, Hyderabad Traffic Police’s official handle on X (formerly Twitter) advised people to drive carefully given the inclement weather.

Also Read: IMD issues yellow alert for Telangana from 18 to 21 March

Rain causes power cuts, waterlogging in Hyderabad

As per the Telangana State Development Planning Society, the Secunderabad and Moosapet areas received by 6 pm the heaviest rain under the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) limits.

The showers also reportedly caused power cuts in various areas of Hyderabad due to hailstorms and thunderstorms.

One user shared on X on Tuesday evening that the Peerzadiguda area was experiencing power cuts for at least three hours.

Meanwhile, the Telangana State Southern Power Distribution Company Limited noted in a series of posts on X that heavy rain had caused power cuts in not only several areas of Hyderabad but also the state. “Restoration underway,” it added to each post.

 

Several areas under the GHMC limits also experienced waterlogging to various degrees, throwing normal life out of gear.

One user took to X to share videos of this, and tagged Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy as well as the GHMC, urging them to look for solutions.

The user noted that traffic was stuck, and people travelling on two-wheelers were facing the “worst situations”.

He also noted that all this was the result of rain just during summer, seemingly implying that the situation in the monsoons could be worse.

Others also displayed ire after getting stuck in traffic due to the rain, especially as it happened hours after Hyderabad experienced traffic restrictions due to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s rally.

Also Read: IMD issues third heatwave warning for several Telangana districts from 1 April

Orange alert across Telangana

Even as Hyderabad experienced some rough weather, the Begumpet office of the India Meteorological Department (IMD), in its 8.30-pm forecast on Tuesday,  issued an orange alert for the state for the next 12 hours.

It predicted that thunderstorms accompanied by lightning and gusty winds (40-50 kmph) were very likely to occur at isolated places in the Komaram Bheem Asifabad, Mancherial, Peddapally, Jayashankar Bhupalapally, Mulugu, Bhadradri Kothagudem, Nalgonda, Suryapet, Jangaon, Yadadri Bhuvangiri, Rangareddy, and Nagarkurnool districts of Telangana.

The Met office added that heavy rain was very likely to occur at isolated places in the Komaram Bheem Asifabad, Mancherial, Bhadradri Kothagudem, Khammam, Nalgonda, Suryapet, Jangaon, Yadadri Bhuvangiri, Rangareddy, Hyderabad, Medchal Malkajgiri, and Nagarkurnool districts of the state.

It also said that thunderstorms accompanied by lightning and gusty winds (30-40 kmph) were very likely to occur at isolated places in the Adilabad, Jagtial, Rajanna Sircilla, Karimnagar, Khammam, Mahabubabad, Warangal, Hanumakonda, Siddipet, Hyderabad, Medchal Malkajgiri, Vikarabad, Mahabubnagar, and Wanaparthy districts.

(With inputs from Sumit Jha and Deepika Pasham)