Severe thunderstorms accompanied by hail disrupted normal life across Sikkim in the past 24 hours, leaving one woman dead and some injured while causing widespread power outages in different parts of the mountain state.

Sources in the Gangtok district administration said Kala Devi Chettri, 55, had died after a tree had fallen on her in the Rakdang-Kafer area on Sunday evening.

In Pakyong district, three people were injured when a tree fell on an SUV. The vehicle was damaged, and the injured passengers were rushed to a nearby hospital, where they are undergoing treatment.

Officials of the state power department said the intense thunderstorm and hailstorm on Sunday evening caused multiple faults in the power transmission system. Several 66 kV transmission lines tripped, disrupting the electricity supply in different areas.

In Pakyong district, a conductor of the 66 kV Rorathang–Rongli transmission line snapped near the Amba area, affecting electricity supply to Rongli and Rhenock.

In Gangtok district, a spark accompanied by a loud noise was reported near the Namli area along the 66 kV Marchak–Macleods transmission line, which disrupted power supply to Nimtar, Topakhani, Singtam, and the Khamdong belt.

Additionally, the 66 kV LLHP–Sichey transmission line failed to sustain trial charging, further affecting supply.

In Mangan district, heavy sparking and loud noises were observed near the G.B. Pant Wildlife Sanctuary during trial charging of the 66 kV Perbing–Phodong transmission line, resulting in power disruptions across the district.

“Teams have been deployed in the affected areas and are working on a war footing to restore power supply,” said an official.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a yellow (primary) warning for most parts of the state for the next 48 hours.

According to IMD officials, hailstorms and thunderstorms accompanied by gusty winds of around 40km per hour are likely to affect Gangtok, Gyalshing, Mangan, Soreng, Namchi, and Pakyong districts.

The authorities have advised residents to remain cautious as unstable weather conditions may continue in the coming days.

Strong gusty winds disrupted normal life in many places of Darjeeling, Kurseong, Kalimpong, and Mirik around 4.30pm on Monday. The wind also disrupted the power supply across the hills.

On Sunday evening, a similar situation also occurred in the hills because a hailstorm and strong winds also affected normal life in many places in the hills. In the Kalimpong district, connectivity along some local roads was disrupted as trees fell on the roads. Later, those were cleared.

In Malda, a storm that lasted for merely 10 minutes caused damage in different blocks of the district on Sunday night.

The storm damaged some shelters of erosion victims, and a temporary gate made of bamboo to celebrate the upcoming Eid in Englishbazar was badly hit by the gusty wind. Also, a few trees in the municipal areas were uprooted by the storm.

Weather experts said the wind blew at a speed of 45 to 50 kilometres per hour during the storm.

Preeti Goyal, the district magistrate, said that the departments concerned and the block administrations were asked to submit a stock of the situation caused by the storm. "However, no major damage or casualty was reported from any end,” she said.

Additional reporting by our Darjeeling and Malda correspondents