Severe storms

A 12-year-old girl was killed by lightning on Wednesday in Prey Veng province while she was feeding her cow, local officials said yesterday.

Provincial police officer Pov Sarith said that at least 43 houses were destroyed across three districts in strong storms, with one other girl injured by lightning.

Keo Vy, National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM) cabinet director, told the Post yesterday that almost 100 people had been either killed or injured by lightning in the year to May, double that of the same period last year.

“The storms and lightning strikes happen when the seasons are changing from the dry to the rainy season,” he said, adding that the Kingdom had faced unusually severe storms this year.

NCDM statistics also showed that 1,088 houses were destroyed completely and another 5,018 houses were damaged between mid-March and early May this year in 91 storms that affected 22 provinces.