Thunderstorms struck at several places in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, killing 34 people as hutments collapsed and trees fell, officials said.
Nineteen people died in Bihar on Monday night, with the adjoining districts of Gaya and Aurangabad reporting five deaths each, Bihar’s disaster management department said.
The other deaths were reported from Munger, Katihar and Nawada districts, it said.
In Uttar Pradesh, 15 people were killed and 10 injured, a senior official said.
“While six people were killed in Unnao in thunderstorm and lightning lon Monday night, three died in Raebareli, and two each in Kanpur, Pilibhit and Gonda districts,” U.P. Relief Commissioner Sanjay Kumar said.
Among those injured, four belonged to Unnao and three each were from Kannauj and Raebareli. The storm damaged hutments in Unnao and Rae Bareli districts, he said.
District magistrates have been directed to ensure distribution of relief within 24 hours, U.P. Principal Secretary (Information) Awanish Awasthi said.
Unnao DM Ravikumar said while two deaths were due to lightning, the others died in incidents of house collapse, uprooting of trees and electric poles.
Traffic on the main Hardoi-Unnao road was hit because of fallen trees, which were later removed, the DM said.
Rain and thunderstorms, accompanied by gusty winds with speeds reaching 50-70 kmph, are very likely at isolated places in U.P. over the next couple of days, Meteorological department officials said.
Nitish issues directives
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar condoled the deaths and issued instructions for quick disbursement of ex-gratia compensation.
Storms this month have left a trail of destruction in various States. On May 2-3, a storm killed 134 people and injured over 400 in five States.
Uttar Pradesh was the worst hit, with 80 deaths, most of them in Agra district.
