'Twister' hits Kedah, damages at least eight houses

Picture taken by a salesman Loh Chin Seong, 43, on the North South Expressway heading from Pendang to Alor Star , showed the twister in the middle of a padi field.

ALOR STAR: A freak storm hit a village in Pendang, damaging around eight houses about 25km from here.

The incident occurred at about 4pm on Tuesday at Kampung Alor Besar, Mukim Ayer Putih in Pendang.

Strong winds blew off the roofs of some houses in a village, while many trees were uprooted.

Lamp posts and electricity cables also came crashing down, but no injuries were reported.

According Pendang assistant civil defence officer Norashikin Ahmad Zawawi said the roofs of eight village houses were damaged by the freak storm.

"About 40 residents of the village were affected by the storm. They have been temporarily evacuated to the houses of relatives.

"During the incident, the sky was covered with dark clouds and the wind was very strong, but there was no rain," he said.