Cold wave revives in HP due to rain and snow

Shimla, Feb 13 (PTI) Several areas in the higher reacheswere cut off from the rest of Himachal Pradesh as the stateexperienced another spell of snowfall today reviving cold waveconditions.

The hills and mountain passes including Lahaul and Spitiand Kinnuar have been experiencing moderate to heavy snowfallsince last evening.

Telecommunication services were badly disrupted inLahaul and Spiti district, which was already cut off by roadfrom rest of the state due to heavy snowfall.

Keylong in Lahaul recorded 45 cm of fresh snow whileKillar in Pangi, Rohtang pass, Mari and Koksar recorded 70 cmto 90 cm of snow as snowfall was continuing.

The key tourist resorts of Manali, Narkanada, HatooPeak, Sarahan and Sangla also experienced snowfall whileShimla, Kullu, Mandi, Solan, Sirmaur and other hilly areaswere experiencing heavy rains accompanied by high velocity icywinds.

Manali recorded about 30 cm of snow this evening whilethe nearby Solang ski slopes were covered under 120 cm thicklayer of snow bringing cheers to skiers.

Kalpa and Sangla in Kinnaur district recorded 30 cm ofsnow while Narkanada and Khara patthar in Shimla district had20 cm of snow.

The day temperatures plummeted across the state due tofresh rains and snow with state capital Shimla recording ahigh of 7.6 degree while Sundernagar, Bhuntar, Mandi and Solan13.4, 9.0, 13.0 and 17.4 degree C respectively, a drop of 6-8deg C since yesterday.

The local MeT office predicted more rains and snow inthe next 48 hours with night temperatures dropping by fewnotches.