Thunderstorms struck homes in Oddor Meanchey Province. Supplied
Thunderstorms struck 170 homes in six provinces on Sunday, with 10 properties completely destroyed. Damage was also caused to the roofs of 160 houses, said the Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology.
The ministry’s official Facebook page on Monday named the six affected provinces as Kampong Cham, Kampong Chhnang, Kampong Thom, Kandal, Oddar Meanchey and Preah Vihear.
At Army Division No 3 in Preah Vihear’s Choam Ksan district, strong winds damaged a meeting hall and the roofs of 27 houses belonging to army families.
In addition, the storms tore down two gates at the annual Angkor Sangkran festival celebrating Khmer New Year in Siem Reap. No one was injured.
National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM) spokesman Keo Vy told The Post on Monday that he had not yet received a report about Sunday’s storms, but that those affected would receive emergency food aid from the Cambodian Red Cross while their houses would be repaired.
“We received a call from the government and the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces are on standby to help anyone in need of evacuation, and to assist with repairing and rebuilding houses,” he said.
Deputy Prime Minister Ke Kim Yan, who visited affected families in Banteay Meanchey province on Sunday, appealed to civil servants, the armed forces and the general public to help with the relief effort.
He stressed that assistance would be provided regardless of class, colour, religion or political affiliation.
On Monday, the ministry said temperatures this year were some two degrees Celsius higher than in previous years, and that from Tuesday to Thursday it expected light rain in Kampong Cham, Kampong Chhnang, Kampong Speu, Kampot, Kandal, Preah Sihanouk, Prey Veng, Takeo and Tbong Khmum provinces.
Phnom Penh is forecast to see moderate rain over the same period.
According to local media, due to the rainfall over the last few days, black sewage has been flowing into the sea at Ochheuteal Beach in Sihanoukville’s Commune IV and is affecting tourists.
They reported that Sihanoukville municipal governor Y Sokleng said he was unaware of the problem and referred questions to Cheng Srong, the director of the provincial Department of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction.
Neither Sokleng nor Srong were available for comment on Monday.
