Official have distributed emergency aid in the wake of weekend rainstorms that destroyed 21 homes in Banteay Meanchey and Kampot provinces and damaged nearly 200 more.

Ngor Meng Chroun, the governor of Poipet, said that 95 houses in two villages were damaged by the storm on Friday.

“The strong wind hit villagers’ houses in two villages, and it damaged nearly 100 houses, but there were only 19 houses completely destroyed,” he said, adding that luckily there were no injuries from the storm.

Ngor Meng Chroun said the officials went down to help the villagers at night, and they moved residents to a safe place.

“We distributed some aid to them such as tents, rice and money, and we are appealing to the charity agencies to provide some help to them as well.”

In the middle of last month, nearly 70 houses were destroyed and three people injured in a storm in Banteay Meanchey.

Meanwhile, a midday rainstorm on Saturday hit two districts and one town in Kampot province, damaging 100 homes.

Ung Meng Hour, Kampot’s provincial deputy governor, said yesterday that the storm damaged 89 houses in Kampot town, nine houses in Kampong Trach and two houses in Teuk Chhou district.

“There were only two houses completely destroyed by the rainstorm, and there was not anybody injured in this case,” he said, adding that the families of the destroyed homes in Kampot town received emergency aid from the Cambodian Red Cross and local officials.

On Friday, the Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology released a weather warning that stated a storm originating in the South China Sea would soon arrive at Vietnam’s southern coast.

The storm will affect Cambodia until Tuesday and will feature strong wind, heavy rainfall, thunder and lightning.

To contact the reporter on this story: Mom Kunthear at [email protected]