Cold tightens grip on HP

The biting cold wave sweeping most parts of Himachal Pradesh further tightened its grip as tribal areas and other higher reaches received more snow and high velocity icy winds lashed the region.
Tribal areas of Lahaul and Spiti, Kinnaur, Pangi and Bharmaur experienced intermittent snow while Churdhar and Dhauladhar ranges and higher reaches in Chamba district had another spell of snowfall and key tourist resort of Dalhousie witnessed snowflakes.
The sky remained heavily overcast and minimum temperature dropped to minus 5.3 degrees Celsius in Manali and minus 0.4 degrees Celsius in Solan, three to five notches below normal, the MeT department said.

The minimum temperature settled at minus 0.2 degrees in Sundernagar and Bhuntar, while it was 0.7 degrees in Shimla, 1.0 degree in Una, 3.0 degree in Palampur and 3.6 degree in Nahan, three to five notches below normal, the MeT said.
Keylong and Kalpa in tribal areas of Lahaul and Spiti and Kinnaur recorded minimum temperatures at minus 11.3 degrees and minus 7.0 degrees while high altitude tribal areas groaned under Arctic conditions with minimum temperatures staying between minus 15 and minus 25 degrees Celsius.
The maximum temperature dropped by two notches to stay at 18.0 degrees in Una while Sundernagar and Solan recorded high of 14.5 degrees, followed by Nahan 13 degrees, Dharamshala 11.8 degrees, Bhunter 10.7 degrees, Shimla 8.8 degrees and Kalpa 3.0 degrees.

The local Met office has warned of heavy to very heavy snowfall, rains and thunderstorm at many places in mid and higher hills during the next few days.