This is the 9652nd most frequent French word.
détruites
Destroyed.
The word 'détruites' is used to describe the state of the houses after the storm, functioning as a past participle adjective.
Les maisons étaient détruites après la tempête.
The houses were destroyed after the storm.
Here, 'détruites' is the past participle of the verb 'détruire' used in the passé composé tense to describe an action in the past.
Certaines archives historiques ont été détruites lors de l'incendie.
Some historical records were destroyed during the fire.
In this sentence, 'détruites' describes the past condition of cities, functioning as an adjective modifying 'villes'.