Dust storm lashes Capital

At least six people injured

Tarpaulin shelters of earthquake victims blown away

Kathmandu, March 29, 2016: A massive dust storm lashed Kathmandu Valley on Monday afternoon, disrupting air and ground traffic and making pedestrians run helter-skelter for cover, as tin roofs of some sheds were tossed and tarpaulin shelters of quake survivors were blown away.

At least six people were injured during the storm, police said.

The wind gusts clocked 83 kilometres per hour, said Barun Poudel, senior meteorologist at the Meteorological Forecasting Division (MFD), describing the storm as one of the strongest wind systems ever recorded in the Capital. Kathmandu Valley, which has witnessed a thick blanket of haze for the last 10 days, was shrouded with fine dust particles following the massive storm which lasted almost half an hour and was followed by a light drizzle.

According to the Metropolitan Police Range, Teku, falling trees near Tri-Chandra Campus, a motorcycle accident in Old Baneshwor and a falling stone near Swoyambhunath temple injured six people.

Thick blanket of haze experienced in Kathmandu Valley has been attributed to forest fires and vegetation fires, and weathermen have said it will continue to stay until it rains.

According to Poudel, there is a chance of a brief thunderstorm on Tuesday. “But cloudy weather condition will continue for some days in Kathmandu,” he added.

TIA shut for an hour
KATHMANDU: A sudden dust storm on Monday afternoon resulted in closure of Tribhuvan International Airport for nearly an hour. Some international flights were diverted. A Jet Airways plane flying from Delhi to Kathmandu and an Etihad Airways flight were diverted to Lucknow due to poor visibility and strong wind condition.

Rain, wind affect quake-hit

Gorkha: Hailstorm coupled with strong winds and rains on Monday added to woes of earthquake survivors in different districts. “Our temporary shelters have been damaged by the hailstorm,” said Ganesh Gurung of Laprak in Gorkha district over phone. A strong storm had destroyed temporary shelters of quake survivors in different districts last week as well. Earthquake survivors in Gorkha, Nuwakot, Kavre, Rasuwa and Sindhu-palchok were affected the most by strong
winds and rains on Monday. Storms and hailstones in different parts of Kaski, Gorkha, Dhading and other districts destroyed crops as well.