Severe storms in Assam amid Rongali Bihu kill 14 people in 3 days

At least 14 people have died in Assam in the past three days due to severe storms that have damaged houses, educational institutions and uprooted trees amid celebrations of Rongali Bihu, the state's biggest cultural festival.

Over 41,000 people in 592 villages have been affected due to the storm since Thursday.

The deaths have been reported from Dibrugarh (5), Tinsukia (3), Barpeta (3), Baksa (2) and Goalpara (1) districts. Several parts of Assam continued to witness storms and heavy rains on Sunday evening too. But reports about the damage caused by the storm on Sunday has yet to come.

The severe storms hit several districts on Thursday, a day before the start of Rongali Bihu, in which eight deaths were reported from Dibrugarh (4), Barpeta (3) and Goalpara (1) districts. Nearly 600 villages were affected and over 1,500 houses were damaged (full and partially) due to the storm on Thursday.

A report from Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) on Saturday night said that six more deaths were reported from Tinsukia (3), Baksa (2) and Dibrugarh (1) on Friday and Saturday, taking the death toll to 14. Over 2,300 houses have been damaged by the storm, it said.

Sources said most of the deaths were caused after uprooted trees fell on houses due to the severe storm. The storm caused misery to thousands of people who were celebrating the annual Rongali Bihu festival. "A few died while they were returning from Bihu functions organised by committees in different places. A warning has been sounded across Assam about possible storms and rainfall in the next few days too," said an ASDMA official.

"Assessment of the damages caused by the storm is being done by the district administration for compensation by the government," said the official.

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