Shopian: A windstorm caused heavy damage to residential houses, fruit trees, cars and other vehicles, and power transmission infrastructure in many areas of Kashmir on Friday.

The meteorological department in J&K as well as Faizan Arif, a popular independent weather forecaster, had both predicted a two to three-hour spell of heavy gusty wind and rain showers in Pir Panjal region and many parts of Kashmir.

Many videos and photographs circulated on social media showing roofs of several houses damaged due to trees that fell on them.

Hundreds of fruit and other trees were knocked down by the heavy winds. Many cars and other vehicles were also damaged when trees fell on them.

Irfan Ahmad, a resident of Chitragam, said that his house’s roof was damaged due to the heavy storm which occurred at around 4:30 in the afternoon.

Besides the damage to property, electricity supply in many south Kashmir areas was affected due to the storm. According to officials, it could take till tomorrow (Saturday) to restore supply as many electricity poles have been damaged and wires broken after trees fell on them.

Senior revenue officials in Shopian and Pulwama said that the administration has set up helpline numbers to respond to any emergencies caused by the storm. They said that teams are being constituted to assess the damage.

Raashid Hassan