New Delhi, May 29: 40 people were reported dead in the thunderstorm which struck ports of northern India on Monday. At least three states -- Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand -- were ravaged by the gutsy winds, combined with rainfall, lightning and thunderstorm which struck last night.

The maximum fatalities were reported from Bihar, where 17 people were killed in different districts of the state. In Uttar Pradesh, 10 were killed in lightning incidents across Barabanki, Gorakhpur, Kushinagar and Azamgarh, whereas, six others were left injured.

In Jharkhand, 13 people were killed due to the thunder strikes, along with the falling of poles and trees on pedestrians in different parts of the states. At least eight others have sustained injuries.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a warning in UP, Delhi-NCR, Haryana, along with the southern coastal region of Kerala, Karnataka, Goa and Konkan belt of Maharashtra.

Winds at 60 km/hr along with thunders are expected to strike in the western coastal region.

The IMD has warned fishermen from venturing into the seat in Maharashtra, Goa, Kerala, Lakshadweep and Andaman & Nicobar islands.

Meanwhile, the southwest rain-laden winds also struck the state of Kerala today, marking the start of Monsoon.

Fatal thunderstorm make a comeback

The north Indian states were jolted by a series of severe thunderstorms on May 2-3 which led to the death of 109 people across UP, Rajasthan, Haryana and Delhi-NCR. In the state of UP alone, 73 residents had been killed. The government had announced ex-gratia compensation packages for the kin of deceased.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 29, 2018 12:35 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).