Already reeling under the ongoing ethnic conflict, Manipur was dealt a blow by nature on Sunday afternoon when a devastating hail storm spell damaged 28,423 houses across the state’s 16 districts, according to reports submitted by the DCs by Tuesday night.

The number of relief camps stood at 43.

The preliminary damage assessment was announced by chief minister N. Biren Singh on Monday evening while deputy commissioners were tasked with submitting the final assessment by Wednesday evening, an official dealing with disaster management in the state.

The official said apart from houses and vehicles, the heavy spell of hailstorm has also caused extensive damage to farmland and livestock.

Imphal West district has suffered the most damage in terms of houses damaged (6055) followed by Imphal East (5600).

“It was unprecedented. I have never seen such a hailstorm in my life. It was very intense and lasted uninterrupted for five minutes. A lot of cash crops, fruits and livestock have been destroyed.”

“The weather was okay on Monday and today. Relief was being extended. We are trying to arrange CI sheets for the affected houses. There is only one casualty and three injuries. We deployed SDRF teams in Imphal West,” the 47-year-old official told The Telegraph.

The state government has sanctioned ₹ 6.09 crore for providing immediate relief, the chief minister Singh had said on Monday.

The government has set up helplines in 13 of the state’s 16 districts and shut down schools and colleges on Monday and Tuesday as a precautionary step “against the risk posed by inclement weather”.

The natural disaster will add to Manipur’s woes because it has come amidst a conflict situation, he said. The ongoing strife has claimed at least 227 lives and displaced over 67,000 since it erupted on May 3, 2023.

Meghalaya too saw Sunday’s cyclonic storm and heavy rainfall affect seven of the state’s 12 districts, damaging 483 houses, affecting 949 persons and 29 villages.