Rain helps cool Delhi; but wall collapses kill 2 children in neighbouring Haryana

The IMD said the impact of the western disturbance will continue over the weekend and issued a yellow alert for Delhi.

A western disturbance kept Delhi cooler and largely overcast on Friday, bringing relief from the recent spell of intense heat, but the weather system also left a trail of destruction across parts of neighbouring Haryana, where two children were killed and five others injured in wall and roof collapses triggered by a thunderstorm.

The IMD has forecast light rain and gusty winds on Saturday and Sunday. (PTI)

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said the impact of the western disturbance will continue over the weekend and issued a yellow alert for Delhi, forecasting light rain and gusty winds on Saturday and Sunday. Delhi’s maximum temperature settled at 36.8°C on Friday, four degrees below normal and significantly lower than Thursday’s 41.1°C, when parts of the city were lashed by gusty winds and brief but intense spells of rain.

Rain since Thursday evening also helped improve Delhi’s air quality, prompting the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) to revoke stage-I curbs under the Graded Response Action Plan (Grap) with immediate effect. Delhi’s air quality index (AQI) stood at 123 (moderate) at 4pm on Friday, compared with 207 (poor) a day earlier.

Safdarjung, the city’s base weather station, recorded 4mm of rainfall till 8.30am on Friday. Palam logged 4.3mm, Ayanagar 3.8mm and Rajghat 1.7mm during the same period.

“Despite no rainfall after noon, the sky remained largely overcast, which led to a drop in the maximum temperature. Since May 27, the maximum temperature has fallen by 7-9°C,” an IMD official said.

The maximum temperature is expected to remain between 34°C and 36°C on Saturday and between 35°C and 37°C on Sunday, before gradually rising again after June 3, officials said.

Mahesh Palawat, vice-president at Skymet Weather, said conditions remain favourable for intermittent rain during the night and early morning hours.

“There will be a cooling effect till May 31,” he said.

While Delhi largely escaped major damage, the thunderstorm proved deadly in parts of Haryana.

In Nuh district, a 15-year-old boy died and four other children were injured after a section of the boundary wall of Government Senior Secondary School in Tapkan village collapsed during strong winds and rain. Police said the children had taken shelter near the wall when a nearly 30-foot stretch gave way, trapping them under the debris.

The injured children, aged between 11 and 15 years, were admitted to a hospital for treatment, officials said.

In a separate incident in Chandeni village, a nine-year-old boy died after a wall of his house collapsed in the storm. According to police, the child was inside the house when a portion of the structure gave way. He was pulled out of the debris and rushed to hospital, where doctors declared him dead.

In Pataudi area, a nine-year-old boy suffered serious head injuries after lightning struck his house on Thursday evening, damaging part of the roof. Debris from the roof fell on the child while he was asleep.

Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 25.3°C on Friday, one degree below normal. The minimum is expected to remain between 22°C and 26°C through the weekend.