Delhi hailstorm aftermath: Jama Masjid dome damaged, 16° drop in temp, 2 dead. Read here

Heavy rains and hailstorm lashed national capital Delhi on Monday after the city had been suffering from sweltering heat.

The hailstorm damaged many cars, brought traffic to a grinding halt, left trees uprooted and led to power outages in various parts of the capital on Monday.

Delhi recorded 17.8 mm of rainfall till 5.30 PM, according to the weather department. The wind was so strong that an air conditioners fell off a building on the Parliament Street, causing damage to cars and auto-rickshaws.

Drop in Temperature

The Temperatures in Delhi fell sharply on Monday as the capital city was lashed by heavy downpour and hailstorm. The maximum temperature fell by at least 13°C according to readings at Palam observatory near the airport, and by 16 degree Celsius in south Delhi's Safdarjung.

"Between 4.20 pm and 5.40 pm, the temperature fell from 40 degree Celsius to 25 degree Celsius at Safdarjung," the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.

The busy national capital's sky darkened around 4:20 pm as the thunderstorm accompanied by hail started, thereby providing relief to the boiling temperatures in the capital.

Cars damaged

A particular visual that caught attention was a red Volkswagen that was damaged after a piece of metal pierced its windshield. Visuals of another car trapped under an uprooted tree at Connaught Place also circulated on the social media.

West Delhi BJP MP Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma's car was also damaged after branches of a free fell on the vehicle parked at his official residence at Windsor Place.

Jama Masjid dome finial damaged

The historic Jama Masjid had its finial broken and suffered other damage in a storm that was accompanied by heavy rains in Delhi on Monday evening.

Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid Syed Ahmed Bukhari said that two people were injured by stones as they became loose and fell down from one of the minarets and other parts of the mosque.

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“Middle dome finial broke into 3 parts, 2 fell down, one is still stuck. If not brought down & it falls, it'll damage the wall before it. I'm writing to ASI DG to bring down the damaged portion. Falling stones injured 2-3 people,” Syed Ahmed Bukhari, Shahi Imam, Delhi's Jama Masjid told news agency ANI. 

Delhi Waqf Board officials said a team was sent to Jama Masjid for inspection and assessment of the damage.

Trees uprooted

"Till 7.15 pm, a total of 101 complaints were received about uprooted trees and broken branches. Work is on to clear the areas where such incidents have been witnessed. Several areas, including Bhagwan Das road, Connaught Place, SP Marg, have already been cleared," a senior NDMC official said.

Trees were also uprooted on the Bhai Vir Singh Marg in Gole Market area near the Nepal Embassy and also near the Parliament Street police station leading to obstruction in traffic.

The Kasturba Gandhi Marg was completely closed for vehicular movement after trees were uprooted there.

There were also visuals of poles damaging vehicle in the capital's South Extension market while a Delhi Traffic Police booth at Vijay Chowk fell owing to strong winds.

Water Logging

Waterlogging was also reported from various areas in the national capital.

"Traffic is affected on MB Road (Both carriageway) due to water logging at Railway Underpass Pul Prahladpur. Kindly avoid the stretch," the Delhi Traffic Police said in a tweet.

Deaths 

A 50-year-old man died in the Jama Masjid area in centra Delhi after a portion of a balcony of a neighbouring house fell on him during the strong winds when he was standing outside his residence.

The victim, identified as Kailash, was declared brought dead at Sanjeevan hospital in Daryaganj, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) Shweta Chauhan said.

In the Angoori Bagh area of North Delhi, a 65-year-old homeless man identified as Basir Baba died after a Peepal tree fell on him, the police said.

In another instance, three members of a family including a one-year-old child were rescued after a Neem tree fell on a Creta car near Kabootar Market in Chandni Chowk.