Bangladesh Tornado Toll Rises to 69
The death toll from tornadoes in northern Bangladesh has risen to 69, news reports said today.
The storms Wednesday destroyed more than 3,000 tin-roof and mud-and-straw huts, leaving about 15,000 villagers homeless, authorities said. Nearly 1,000 people were injured, many of them hospitalized with broken limbs.
The government has confirmed that 55 people died in the storms that hit nearly two dozen villages in neighboring Netrakona and Mymensingh districts.
The Sangbad and Inqilab newspapers today raised the death toll to 69, including 48 in Netrakona.
The reports said 11 more bodies had been found overnight in Netrakona, 80 miles north of the capital, Dhaka, while three more bodies were discovered in Mymensingh.
Aid items such as rice and plastic tarps have been rushed to the areas, the disaster management and relief ministry said.
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