Heavy snowfall in West Bengal's highest Himalayan destination Sandakphu stranded at least 40 tourists, who were evacuated to safer places, a Darjeeling district official said on Friday.

The hamlet, which offers a stunning view of the Kanchenjunga, the Everest and some other peaks in the Himalayas, is a favourite spot among adventure-loving tourists visiting the Darjeeling hills.

At least 40 tourists, including children, who got stranded at various homestays and hotels in Sandakphu due to the snowfall over the last few days, were evacuated by the Darjeeling district administration and police on Thursday, the official said.

He said that the snowfall was continuing on Friday as well and the whole area was under a thick blanket of snow.

Situated at a height of 11,930 feet on the Singalila ridge in the Himalayas, Sandakphu offers a majestic view of the Kanchenjunga, Everest, Makalu and Lhotse peaks.

Darjeeling town, popularly described as the queen of the hills, recorded 31.2 mm rainfall in 24 hours till 8.30 am on Friday as the minimum temperature settled at 5.6 degrees Celsius, the Met department said.

Light to moderate rain with thunderstorms and lightning has been forecast by the Met for the next five days in the sub-Himalayan districts of Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Jalpaiguri, Cooch Behar and Alipurduar.

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