More than 1,600 homes were damaged and five people injured by thunderstorms in the first week of May, but no one was killed, according to an official from the National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM).

NCDM spokesman Seak Vichet told The Post on May 8 that compared to the same period last year, the weather this year was more severe due to the speed and strength of thunderstorms, which Cambodia has not experienced for a long time.

Vichet explained that the current weather conditions in Cambodia are affected by storms coming from other countries, which have caused strong winds that damaged property and homes.

"Generally, since mid-April, we have seen this natural disaster affect public and private properties in many provinces, such as Kampong Speu, Kampong Cham, Svay Rieng, Oddar Meanchey and Koh Kong,"Vichet said.

However, according to Vichet, for the first week of this month, the thunderstorms were so strong that some provinces were severely affected by heavy rains and strong winds, such as Battambang and Pursat.

Battambang Provincial Administration spokesman Soeum Bunrith told The Post that in the past few days, the province has been affected by strong wind, thunderstorms and lightning strikes that have damaged many homes.

However, Bunrith did not have specific data because the damage was in many districts, such as Rukhak Kiri, Thma Koul and Kors Kralor. Authorities are providing food and other relief material from the Cambodian Red Cross to assist people affected by the storms.

"We provide them with items such as zinc roofs, mosquito nets and blankets. Others also get rice and other material depending on the seriousness of the damage," he said.