OUR CORRESPONDENT, Netrakona

A fresh spell of hailstorms and nor’wester battered Netrakona late Tuesday night, damaging over a hundred houses and raising fears of major losses to Boro paddy across several upazilas.

The storm swept through the region between 11:00pm and midnight. In Monkandia village of Barhatta upazila, a 15-minute storm partially destroyed more than 100 houses and uprooted numerous trees.

Widespread damage was also reported in parts of Sadar, Purbadhala, Madan, Kendua and Atpara upazilas. Hailstones punctured tin roofs of hundreds of homes, while standing crops were flattened in many fields.

Manik Mia, an affected farmer in Monkandia, said, “My house was blown away in the sudden storm. I somehow survived with my children. Many houses in our village have been damaged. I don’t know where to live with my family now.”

Amirul Islam, deputy director of the Department of Agricultural Extension in Netrakona, said preliminary estimates show around 350 hectares of cropland in Madan, Purbadhala, Kendua and Sadar have been affected.

Bedabati Mistry, UNO of Madan upazila, said hailstorms have caused extensive damage to vegetables and other Rabi crops in the area.

Netrakona Deputy Commissioner Khandakar Mushfiqur Rahman said 300–400 hectares of cropland may have been damaged, adding that final estimates will follow detailed assessments.