Guwahati: A massive storm hit several parts of Assam on Monday night, leaving a trail of destruction. A 20-year-old youth died in Chaygaon in Kamrup district near Guwahati after an uprooted tree fell on him while he was watching a Rongali Bihu programme at a pandal.The victim, Bhaskar Kalita, died on the spot when a large tree was uprooted during the storm after midnight in the Pas-Gumi area.Locals said at around 3am on Tuesday, when the Bihu cultural event was about to end, strong winds and thunder struck. “The pandal was damaged and the tree fell on Bhaskar. While he died, at least two others were injured,” said an organiser.Massive storms accompanied by heavy rain lashed several parts of the state, including the Barak Valley region, and districts such as Goalpara and Bongaigaon, causing property damage.According to IMD, thunderstorms accompanied by squally or gusty winds with speeds of 50-80 kmph prevailed at isolated places over Assam and Meghalaya during the last 24 hours. The ASDMA storm report issued on Monday night said seven districts — Dhemaji, Bongaigaon, Golaghat, Charaideo, Lakhimpur, Sribhumi, and Darrang — were affected by the storm.The report stated that 3,732 people were affected across 11 revenue circles and 36 villages in these districts. It added that eight houses were fully damaged, while more than 600 houses were partially damaged.The storm also affected 101.4 hectares of crop area in the last 24 hours.Infrastructure damage included 16 power department poles in various districts, along with other installations and properties belonging to the health and education departments.The Regional Meteorological Centre of the IMD has warned that on Wednesday, thunderstorms and lightning with gusty winds reaching up to 50-60 kmph are very likely at isolated places over Assam, while heavy rain is expected at isolated places over Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, and Meghalaya.Weather observations for the 24 hours ending at 8:30am on Tuesday showed extremely heavy rainfall of more than 21cm at isolated places in Meghalaya, while heavy rainfall of 7-11cm was recorded at isolated places in Arunachal Pradesh.
