TWENTY-SEVEN houses had been destroyed or damaged and two people injured in a storm at Sihanoukville on Saturday, officials said yesterday.

Chhit Sophat, chief of Commune One in the coastal town, said the storm had struck about midday, causing widespread damage and injuring a mother and daughter.

“The 13-year-old girl suffered a head injury, but it was not serious,” he said, adding that offic-ials did not yet know the total cost of the damage.

“Seven houses were completely destroyed and another 20 houses lost their roofs.”

Chhit Sophat said it was the second storm to hit the comm-une in the past two years.

“At the end of 2009, a storm destroyed more than 30 houses, and this one  affected more than 20 houses,” he said.

“I told my villagers, and also informed other villagers, to be careful during storms.”

Keo Vy, chief of cabinet at the National Committee for Disaster Management, said yesterday  more than 100 houses had been wrecked by storms in the Kingdom this year.

“More than 100 homes have been destroyed and about 250  have lost their roofs so far this year,” he said.