Whirlwind Strikes East Lampung, Dozens Of Residents' Houses Are Damaged

Tornado damage in East Lampung (DOK BNPB)

JAKARTA - A tornado hit East Lampung Regency, Lampung. As a result, dozens of houses were damaged.

"This natural phenomenon occurs when it rains with high intensity accompanied by strong winds which causes a number of residential areas to be damaged, ranging from light damage to heavy damage," said Plt. Head of the BNPB Disaster Data, Information and Communication Center Abdul Muhari in his statement, Tuesday, September 7.

The BPBD of East Lampung Regency reported that 16 houses were damaged, with details of 4 heavily damaged houses and 12 lightly damaged houses. In addition, there are public facilities that are affected, namely 1 unit of elementary school building and 1 unit of prayer room building.

A total of 1 village and 2 hamlets in Labuhan Maringgai sub-district were affected by the tornado phenomenon, namely Hamlet IX and Hamlet VII located in Margasari Village.

"In response to this incident, BPBD has visited the location to carry out emergency handling, such as evacuating residents, conducting rapid assessments and coordinating across agencies," said Abdul Muhari.

Today, the weather in East Lampung is still cloudy and has the potential to rain. The joint team and the local community worked together to cut or clean up fallen trees that were blocking the road.

Based on weather forecasts issued by the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), it is stated that most of Sumatra is entering the rainy season from September to November.

"During this transitional season, BNPB urges the public and stakeholders to be aware of the potential for strong winds, heavy rain in a short time, tornadoes and the potential for weather that triggers hydrometeorological hazards," said Abdul Muhari.