Gale wreaks havoc in different parts of Bihar, 27 persons killed; 24 others injured

The condition of several injured was stated to be critical. The traffic snarls were reported on Vikramshila Setu at Bhagalpur and several road accidents and boat mishaps took place in different parts of Bihar. Boats laden with sand capsized in the Ganga river in the riverine belt of Patna. Although, no casualty was reported.

Patna (Bihar):The rain accompanied by a thunderstorm lashed several parts of Bihar on Thursday killing at least 27 persons and injuring 24 people so far. Besides, the Met Office has issued an Orange alert for Samastipur, Bhagalpur, Khagaria, Darbhanga, Madhubani, East Champaran, Sitamarhi, Sheohar, Muzaffarpur and Begusarai districts of the state. The Met Office has predicted lightning in some areas of the state with the expected wind speed of 40 to 50 km per hour sweeping across Bihar.

The condition of several injured was stated to be critical. The traffic snarls were reported on Vikramshila Setu at Bhagalpur and several road accidents and boat mishaps took place in different parts of Bihar. Boats laden with sand capsized in the Ganga river in the riverine belt of Patna. Although, no casualty was reported. People on the boat swam to safety, said sources.

At least 12 people, six each in Muzaffarpur and Bhagalpur were killed due to Thursday's gale, three people died in Lakhisarai whereas four deaths, two each at Vaishali and Munger were reported. Besides, Banka, Jamui, Katihar, Kishanganj, Jehanabad, Saran, Nalanda and Begusarai districts reported one death each. On the other hand, several injured persons have been battling for life in different hospitals in Bihar, said sources.

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The thunderstorm caused the snapping of the overhead wire at Khagaria railway station. Dibrugarh-New Delhi Rajdhani Express was stranded at the station for several hours. Besides, the train operation was stopped at different railway stations in Bihar as a precautionary measure. A woman was critically injured in Khagaria district when a BSNL tower fell on her, added the source.

A truck overturned on Mahatma Gandhi Setu in Patna leading to a huge snarl on the bridge for several hours. The storm caused a container lorry to overturn on Vikramshila Setu in Bhagalpur district of Bihar, which resulted in a traffic jam on the bridge. The huge traffic snarl was witnessed on NH-31 and NH-80 also due to the jam on Vikramshila Setu, said sources.

Trees fell on electric wires leading to disruption of power supply, the communication network went haywire as snag was reported in mobile towers in different parts of Bihar. One person was killed in the Jamui district of Bihar when a bamboo tree uprooted and fell on him. A woman was killed in the Saran district when a corrugated rooftop steel sheet fell on her.