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The first devastating tornado of the season tears through northern Bangladesh, killing people and washing away thousands of homes
At least 35 people were killed and 500 injured in a tornado that whipped through two districts in northern Bangladesh, late March 21. The tornado, packing winds of up to 90 kph, tore through several villages in the districts of Gaibandha and Rangpur, flattening houses, uprooting trees and electric poles and damaging crops.
Dozens of villages in Gaibandha and Rangpur were affected as the storm destroyed rural homes, made mostly from bamboo, straw and corrugated iron sheets, which could not withstand the rain and the winds.
According to official sources, the death toll could rise as rescue workers continue to search through the debris. "The storm has left a trail of destruction and we are carrying relief to the affected people. The storm also (rendered) nearly 10,000 people homeless," said an official in Gaibandha, some 300 km from the capital Dhaka.
Source: Reuters, March 21, 2005
PTI, March 21, 2005
AP, March 20, 2005
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