Waterspout damages 15 village homes in Penang
GEORGE TOWN: At least 15 village homes in Jalan Tanjung Tokong Lama here were damaged by a massive waterspout at 1.30pm yesterday.
The waterspout appeared following a downpour before noon.
Housewife Aishah Hashim, 64, was about to perform her Zohor prayers when the roof of her double-storey home flew apart.
“I was about to perform my prayers when it happened. I was alone and terrified, and did not know what to do.
“I ran out of the house. Everything happened in a split second. Now, I have nowhere to stay for the night.”
Another resident, Mohd Fareez Othman, 31, said he was hanging out with his friends when the waterspout hit them.
He said they took cover at a nearby building.
“It (waterspout) was huge. I have lived here for more 20 years, and have never seen something like that.
“We feared the worse, but, alhamdulillah, no one was injured.”
A 20-second video of the phenomenon went viral.
Civil Defence Force personnel were deployed to the scene.
A similar incident occurred near the Penang Bridge in April 2017 and later in October the same year.