TURA: Two back-to-back thunderstorms accompanied with high intensity winds that lashed West Garo Hills, including Tura town, on Monday night and early Tuesday morning has resulted in a major power outage as lines snapped at several places owing to tree falls.
The impact was most felt from the midnight storm that hit the region as strong gusty winds accompanied with rain led to the uprooting of trees at several places and snapping of power.
To make matters worse, an early morning thunderstorm accompanied with hail and lightning further added to the damage.
West Garo Hills deputy commissioner informed The Shillong Times that damage from the two storms was primarily on electric posts and wires. He added that two thatched houses in Selsella region were partially damaged from the storm.
In Tura, power lines were down at several places due to uprooted trees falling onto electric wires. Damages have been reported from several localities of the town including Wadanang, Sampalgre, Chandmari and Dakopgre.
Efforts to get power restored was proving to be a difficult task for the MeECL workers particularly in areas such as Chandmari, Sampalgre, Wadanang and adjoining areas due to snapping of power lines at several places caused by uprooted trees.
To make matters worse, damaged and rust affected electric posts that required to be changed were not replaced on time leading to more complications for the restoration teams. An electric post supplying power to the entire KA road locality including the district tuberculosis hospital has snapped at the foot of its foundation due to rust and is unlikely to get power restored before Wednesday.
While it is a common phenomenon for thunderstorms to hit the region in the run up to the arrival of the monsoon season, yet, the frequency and intensity of the storms have been rising with each year on account of climate change and global warming.
This year, Garo Hills has by far experienced the highest number of thunderstorms, in recent times, with storms lashing the region as early as the month of March.
A thunderstorm having the features of a cyclone hit the Dadenggre, Selsella, Dalu, Rongram and Bajengdoba region in April causing extensive damage to houses and plantations.
Last Sunday afternoon, a sudden freak storm that hit Rajabala area of the plain belt region led to the death of a 11-year-old boy who was struck down by lightning.