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Kolkata stampede: How hour-long downpour turned Chorbagan pandal into a death trap

By · Via Times of India · Published by Everything Blog

In short

A severe stampede occurred at the Chorbagan puja pandal in Kolkata due to an hour-long downpour triggered by a retreating wedge of monsoon, causing the ground to become soggy and making it difficult for people to maintain their footing. The heavy rain also dampened the weather conditions, making it difficult for the Met office to predict the weather accurately. While the Met office predicted the weather to be dry from Sunday, the heavy rain continued until October 21, when it was expected to remain dry. The weather official stated that if the rain had lessened quickly, the disaster may not have happened.

Key points

  • A severe stampede occurred at the Chorbagan puja pandal in Kolkata due to an hour-long do…: A severe stampede occurred at the Chorbagan puja pandal in Kolkata due to an hour-long downpour triggered by a retreating wedge of monsoon, causing the ground to become soggy and making it difficult for people to maintain their footing.
  • The heavy rain also dampened the weather conditions, making it difficult for the Met offi…: The heavy rain also dampened the weather conditions, making it difficult for the Met office to predict the weather accurately.
  • While the Met office predicted the weather to be dry from Sunday, the heavy rain continue…: While the Met office predicted the weather to be dry from Sunday, the heavy rain continued until October 21, when it was expected to remain dry.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

KOLKATA: A sudden and unexpectedly sharp spell of shower, that turned into a torrential downpour and lasted nearly an hour on Saturday evening, spelt disaster for revellers at the Chorbagan puja pandal. It started with a drizzle but soon turned heavy, forcing visitors to rush inside the pandal for shelter. But as the crowd in and around the pandal grew, most waiting for the rain to lose intensity, the shower turned heavy.

Even though sporadic rain had been predicted by the Met office till Saturday, it was expected to be restricted to drizzles. “It was triggered by the retreating wedge or retreating monsoon that causes sporadic rain. Even though monsoon has started retreating and it is expected to be completely dry from Sunday, Kolkata received two sharp spells on Saturday. While the one during the afternoon was relatively light, the evening spell turned out to be consistent and lasted for a significant period of time,” said H R Biswas, deputy director general of meteorology.

Also read: 19 killed in Kolkata stampede; CM Suvendu announces jobs, Rs 25 lakh for kinThe rain turned the ground soggy making foothold difficult which contributed to the stampede, said a weather official.

“The rain was not heavy but retained intensity for more than 45 minutes,” said the official. Had it lessened quickly, the disaster may not have happened, he added.

It also turned out to be a dampener on a day when lakhs had been out on the streets. While puja revellers were left worried about further such spells, the Met office said the dry weather from Sunday will continue at leas till Oct 21, which is Dashami.

“Chances of moderate or heavy rain are virtually nil over the next four days. They will not recur,” said Biswas.

In meteorology, a retreating wedge refers to the weakening and clearing phase of a cold air damming (CAD) event. A “wedge” is a shallow, dense layer of cold air trapped against a mountain range (most famously the eastern side of the Appalachian Mountains in the US).

When this air mass “retreats”, it means the weather system that caused the trap is moving away, allowing the cold, stubborn layer to erode and normal regional temperatures to return.

Original source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

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