A cloudburst in Himachal Pradesh's Bilaspur district struck Gutrahan village in the Namhol area of the Naina Devi assembly constituency early Saturday morning, September 13, 2025, causing significant damage. While there were no reported casualties, the event left a trail of destruction, burying vehicles under debris and damaging agricultural lands.
Kashmir Singh, a local villager, recounted how gushing waters laden with debris swept across agricultural fields, also carrying away several vehicles. The State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) reported that recent floods and landslides have disrupted 953 power transformers and 336 water supply schemes in the state.
Adding to the weather woes, the state capital, Shimla, was blanketed in thick fog on Saturday morning, reducing visibility to a few meters. This caused considerable inconvenience for commuters, particularly during school hours.
The local Meteorological Department has issued a yellow warning for heavy rainfall in isolated parts of the state for Saturday and Sunday. As of Friday evening, 503 roads in the state were closed to traffic, including the Attari-Leh road (National Highway-3), Aut-Sainj road (NH-305), and Amritsar-Bhota road (NH-503A).
Since the monsoon's onset on June 20, Himachal Pradesh has been reeling under heavy rains, which have claimed 218 lives in rain-related incidents and 168 in road accidents, totaling 386 deaths. The state has suffered an estimated loss of ₹4,465 crore.
The state has received an average rainfall of 967.2 mm from June 1 to September 12, which is 43% above the normal of 678.4 mm. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has noted a rise in "mini-cloudbursts" in the region. From the monsoon's start on June 20 to August 30, Himachal Pradesh has experienced 91 flash floods, 45 cloudbursts, and 95 major landslide incidents.
Earlier in the month, on September 9, a landslide triggered by monsoon rainfall in Sharmani village, Kullu district, resulted in at least five deaths and three injuries. The ongoing monsoon season has triggered widespread landslides, flash floods, and cloudbursts, causing significant destruction.
