Darjeeling dist witnesses rain & hailstorm

DARJEELING: Darjeeling district and adjacent areas witnessed rain and hailstorm on Wednesday. Similar weather is expected to continue till January 15.

Darjeeling, Kurseong and Mirik experienced rainfall on Wednesday afternoon. Though the hailstorm was light in Darjeeling, it was very heavy in Kurseong, Mirik and surrounding areas. Kurseong also experienced torrential rainfall.

Hail accumulated on rooftops and roads, turning many areas of Kurseong and Mirik, white. Meanwhile, the plains of Siliguri also experienced rain and hail.

"This is due to the approach of western disturbances over Sub Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim along with moisture incursion from Bay of Bengal," stated Dr. Gopinath Raha of IMD, Gangtok.

The IMD had issued an Amber heavy rain warning for Wednesday for Darjeeling Hills and surrounding areas. The IMD's forecast is cloudy skies with rainfall till January 15.

The cloudy weather along with rain has raised expectations among tourists of yet another spell of snowfall in the Darjeeling Hills.

Sikkim is expected to witness rain in the coming few days with snow in the higher reaches.