Severe 92 Kmph Wind Squall Hits Palam As Delhi Placed Under Red Alert
A severe wind squall packing speeds of up to 92 kmph hit Palam on Monday afternoon, prompting the India Meteorological Department to upgrade its weather warning to a "Red Alert" for the entire Delhi-NCR region. The intense weather event in the Palam locality lasted for two minutes, from 2:28 pm to 2:30 pm, as severe thunderstorm cells swept across the area from the west.
Senior India Meteorological Department (IMD) scientist Krishna Mishra confirmed that the severe squall recorded a wind gust of 50 knots, which translates to nearly 92 kmph. According to IMD definitions, a squall is a sudden increase of wind speed by at least three stages on the Beaufort scale, rising to 44.4 kmph or more and lasting for at least one minute.
The weather station at Palam detected 2.3 mm of rainfall during the initial phase of the storm. The IMD subsequently upgraded an earlier "Orange Alert" to a "Red Alert" as conditions rapidly intensified. A warning valid until 5:45 pm cautioned residents to brace for dust storms, thunderstorms, light to moderate rainfall, and lightning across the national capital region.
Radar imagery from the Palam Doppler radar showed highly localised but powerful convective thunderstorm cells with significant vertical development. These clouds, which indicate severe storm potential, developed over parts of Haryana and areas immediately west and southwest of Delhi. The IMD also warned of potential thunderstorms and strong winds in neighbouring locations, including Sonipat, Rohtak, Jhajjar, Rewari, Bhiwani, Charkhi Dadri, Baghpat, and Khekra.
Meteorologists attributed the sudden development of these severe thunderstorms to a combination of weather systems currently affecting Northwest India. According to the IMD's afternoon weather bulletin, a seasonal low-pressure trough at mean sea level extends from Punjab to Bihar, passing directly through Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, which created highly favourable conditions for the storms.
Despite the severe winds, the cloud cover and subsequent thunderstorm activity are expected to bring some relief from the heat. The IMD has forecast a fall of 2 to 3 degrees Celsius in maximum temperatures on Monday.
