Nor’wester Destroys Mehendiganj Power Grid Before Eid

A severe Nor’wester (Kalbaishakhi) storm swept through the island upazila of Mehendiganj in Barisal on Wednesday morning, 27 May 2026, causing widespread destruction across the region. The storm struck suddenly at around 10:00 am, flattening over a hundred houses, uprooting trees, and severing the local power network. With Eid-ul-Adha approaching, the severe weather has left thousands of riverside residents facing a prolonged blackout and major disruptions.

As the storm subsided, volunteer teams—including athletes from the Mehendiganj Elite Football Academy—began clearing fallen trees from primary roads and damaged electrical installations. Initial reports indicate that the severe weather system also tracked across the neighbouring Hijla and Muladi upazilas, causing varying degrees of property damage.

Localized Structural and Housing Damage

The high-velocity winds caused severe damage to residential properties across several villages within the municipality. In Chunar village, a large Chambal tree was uprooted, crushing the veranda and structural walls of Hanif Poddar’s home. Although three family members were inside when the tree fell, they managed to evacuate without injury.

“We heard the sound of structures breaking during the peak of the storm,” Poddar’s wife recalled. “We fled outside immediately, only to see that the large Chambal tree behind our house had completely collapsed onto our living quarters.”

In Kalikapur village, a large coconut tree fell onto a home near the Adarsha Gram School, destroying the house of Shanto Rari. Local residents noted that Shanto and his sister, both orphans, lived in the house with their grandmother and have been left without alternative shelter. Commercial losses were also reported in Badarpur village, where a poultry farm operated by a local entrepreneur named Shakil, situated on the homestead of Nader Ali Bepari, was completely twisted and destroyed by the wind.

The verified structural losses, grid impacts, and emergency responses across the upazila are detailed in the table below:

Grid Repair Challenges and Emergency Response

The Mehendiganj Fire Station also sustained minor damage during the storm. Firefighter Mohammad Mamun, the duty desk officer, confirmed that a mature mango tree and an adjacent utility pole had collapsed within the station’s perimeter. He added that while emergency crews remained active, no official reports regarding completely blocked arterial roads had been logged by their station.

[Power Grid Restoration Timeline]
Storm Strike (10:00 AM) ──► 10+ Poles Broken ──► Main Line Stabilization ──► Phased Area Revival

The Barisal Palli Bidyut Samity-1 zonal office has deployed all available technical teams to handle the crisis. Mostafizur Rahman, the Deputy General Manager (DGM) of the zonal office, explained that restoring the network remains a significant challenge due to the scale of the damage.

“The storm has broken at least ten of our primary electrical poles and caused severe damage to wires due to falling trees,” Rahman stated. “Our technical crews have been working continuously since the morning. If we succeed in stabilising the main transmission line today, we may be able to restore power supply to a few selective sectors tomorrow. Because the extraction and replacement of broken poles is a time-consuming process, we urge our consumers to maintain patience.”

Efforts to reach Mehendiganj Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Riazur Rahman and the Upazila Project Implementation Officer for official comment on government relief measures were unsuccessful, as multiple phone calls went unanswered. Local journalists have called on the district administration and wealthy citizens to extend immediate financial and relief assistance to the displaced families ahead of the national holiday.