Bangladesh reports first casualties after powerful cyclone floods coastal villages
Kyiv • UNN
The first cyclone of the year, Cyclone Remal, flooded coastal villages in Bangladesh and India's West Bengal, forcing the evacuation of nearly 800,000 people from coastal villages.
A powerful cyclone flooded villages on the coast of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal. Hundreds of thousands of people were left without electricity and forced to leave their homes. Local media report the first victims, UNN writes with reference to Independent.
Details
Cyclone Remal reached the southern coast of Bangladesh late Sunday night and crossed the entire coastal region on Monday, according to the regional Meteorological Department.
Moderate to heavy rains were forecast. A storm surge of up to 1 meter was also expected, threatening to flood low-lying coastal areas. India's Meteorological Department also warned that wind speeds would reach 120 kilometers per hour with gusts of up to 135 kilometers per hour.
Television stations reported that dozens of coastal villages in Bangladesh were flooded as many of the protective dams were washed away or damaged by the force of the storm waves. Authorities have not yet reported the number of casualties, but Somoy TV reported that at least two people were killed.
Earlier in Bangladesh , almost 800 thousand people were evacuated from vulnerable areas. Government official Mohibur Rahman said that volunteers have begun to place the evacuees in 9,000 shelters that have been built to protect them from the cyclone. The government has also closed all schools in the region until further notice.
India's Kolkata airport was closed for the entire day on Monday. Bangladesh closed the airport in the southeastern city of Chattogram and canceled all domestic flights to and from Cox's Bazar.
Add
"Remal became the first cyclone to hit the Bay of Bengal ahead of this year's monsoon season, which lasts from June to September.
The Indian coast is often affected by cyclones, but climate change has increased the intensity of storms, making disaster preparedness more urgent.
