In a recent weather development, Punjab has witnessed intense shifts in the weather conditions, causing intense damage and injuries. Multiple districts across Punjab were hit by a sudden and intense dust storm followed by rain on Saturday evening, causing disruption and damage in several areas. Cities including Jalandhar, Amritsar, Firozpur, Ludhiana, Kapurthala, and Faridkot experienced high-speed winds, low visibility, and scattered rainfall.
It is to be noted that electricity poles have been damaged due to strong winds, due to which the majority of the regions of the state have been witnessing blackouts due to power cuts. And it is now known that till when the power will be resumed.
Along with this, the weather shift has also resulted in chaos across the roads as several trees have been uprooted, causing traffic jams in different areas. Not just this, this weather shift has also resulted in vehicle damage; as per reported roughly 45 to 50 cars and bikes have been damaged due to the strong winds, accompanied with moderate to heavy rain.
In addition to this, two casualties have been reported in Ludhiana and several injuries were reported in major cities of the state.
State-wise chaos and weather shift -
In Jalandhar, the impact of the storm was particularly severe. At Sri Ram Chowk, strong winds brought down a 120-foot Tricolour flagpole, which crashed onto a parked car, causing significant damage. At Company Bagh Chowk, another pole bearing the national flag collapsed due to the storm, injuring one person. In a separate incident at Namdev Chowk, iron grills fell from the Zudio building, damaging a car and a bike parked below. These incidents reflect the severity of the weather event in the city.
In Amritsar and Ferozepur, the storm hit after 5 PM, bringing dust-laden winds and intermittent rainfall. Amritsar reported continuous rain for nearly two hours, while Firozpur saw power outages in several areas. Winds were strong enough to blow away police barricades in parts of Amritsar.
Other regions also faced similar conditions. In Kapurthala and Kotkapura (Faridkot), the dust storm created near-darkness during the day, and heavy winds severely affected outdoor movement.
Ludhiana experienced rain with gusty winds, though no major damage has been reported so far.