Over 500 homes damaged as severe storm lashes Tripura, India
A severe storm damaged or destroyed more than 500 homes across Tripura, India, over a three-day period from Sunday, April 20, to Tuesday, April 22, 2025. The worst damage occurred on Monday when the storm damaged over 400 homes and injured two people.
Cart puller rescuing a dog amid a Tripura floods of 2024. Image credit: Dr. Manik Saha
A severe storm damaged nearly 500 homes across Tripura, India, starting Sunday, April 20, 2025. The worst damage occurred on Monday, April 21, when a powerful rainstorm struck the region, damaging at least 445 homes and injuring two people after the roofs of their homes collapsed.
Significant damage was reported on Monday in Sepahijala, West Tripura, Khowai, Gomati, and South Tripura districts. Official reports indicate that 31 homes were completely destroyed, 157 severely damaged, and 257 partly damaged across the region.
49 electric poles were damaged, disrupting the power supply across the region. Livestock fatalities were also reported. In the South Tripura district, one cow reportedly died due to lightning, while another was injured in the Maicherra area.
According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), several districts recorded above-average rainfall on Monday, with West Tripura reporting the highest total at 77.5 mm (3.05 inches) in the 24-hour period ending at 08:30 local time.
Khowai recorded 45.6 mm (1.8 inches) of rain during the same period, while both Sepahijala and South Tripura received 39.8 mm (1.57 inches). Gomati reported 25.9 mm (1.02 inches), and Unakoti received 17.6 mm (0.69 inches). Dhalai and North Tripura recorded the lowest totals, at 11.4 mm (0.45 inches) and 6.4 mm (0.25 inches), respectively.
It is worth noting that these rainfall totals are the average of the rain totals for the entire district, meaning locally higher rainfall totals have been observed in many parts of the state.
Severe weather conditions began affecting parts of the state on April 15, when multiple districts reported strong winds and moderately heavy rainfall. Two people died on April 16 after strong winds knocked over a tree in Dhalai district.
Although the 24-hour rainfall totals were not significant, continued rainfall and strong winds since April 15 have caused flooding and widespread damage.
The State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC) reported that at least 674 homes sustained damage across the state due to multiple natural disasters in April. Of these, 532 homes were damaged over a three-day period from Sunday to Tuesday, April 22, 2025.
Despite the damage, major rivers including Gomati, Muhuri, and Feni were reported to be flowing below flood levels.
The region suffered significant damage in 2024 when floods claimed 38 lives and affected more than 170 000 people. The state also incurred an estimated loss of INR 150 billion (USD 1.7 billion) across multiple sectors.
More than 200 000 people were relocated to 889 relief camps established across the state as floodwaters submerged large areas in all eight districts. Out of 12 rivers in the state, 11 flowed above the danger level during last year’s floods, and six exceeded the highest recorded levels in the state’s history.
References:
1 Strong winds, rain destroy over 500 houses in Tripura in 3 days; worst damage reported on Monday – The Indian Express – April 22, 2025
I am an Assistant Editor and Severe Weather & Science Journalist at The Watchers, specializing in real-time severe weather coverage, geophysical event reporting, and research-driven scientific analysis. You can reach me at rishav(at)watchers(.)news.
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