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Cyclone Remal hits India and Bangladesh: what we know | Flood news


EXPLAINER

Nine people have died as the cyclone, which made landfall on Sunday, is now weakening and heading inland.

At least nine people were killed and more than a million evacuated as Cyclone Remal approached the eastern coasts of India and Bangladesh, making landfall late on Sunday.

Here's what we know about the cyclone.

Where did Cyclone Remal make landfall?

  • The storm made landfall in the coastal regions of Bangladesh, near the port of Mongla, and the adjacent Sagar Islands in the Indian state of West Bengal with winds of up to 135 kilometers per hour (84 mph), according to the India Meteorological Department. (IM D).
  • Remal began landing around 9 p.m. in India (3:30 p.m. GMT) on Sunday, a process that continued for about five hours, according to the Kolkata regional meteorological office.
  • Remal was the first cyclone to hit the Bay of Bengal this year ahead of the June-September monsoon season.

What do we know about the people who died in the cyclone?

  • Seven people have died in Barishal, Satkhira, Patuakhali, Bhola and Chattogram in Bangladesh, according to a press release from Bangladesh development organization BRAC.
  • Indian media reported that two people died in West Bengal due to the cyclone.

How did the authorities respond to the cyclone?

  • On Sunday, Bangladesh evacuated 800,000 people from nine coastal districts and port areas of Mongla and Chittagong.
  • India's Kolkata airport suspended operations on Sunday afternoon, canceling 50 domestic and international flights.
  • Volunteers were deployed to house evacuees in up to 9,000 cyclone shelters. Schools were also closed until further notice. Some 150,000 people from India's Sundarbans mangrove forest were evacuated inland.
  • The Indian Coast Guard posted on X early Monday that it was closely monitoring the landfall. “Ships and hovercraft are on short notice to respond to post-impact challenges,” the maritime safety organization wrote.
  • India's National Disaster Response Force is clearing roads by removing trees that fell due to strong winds.

What other effect has the cyclone had?

  • Several trees were uprooted, houses were damaged and island towns were flooded.
  • Protective embankments in the Sundarbans delta, shared by India and Bangladesh, were also breached and damaged by high tides. An embankment is a wall built to prevent flooding in an area.
  • People from the Rohingya community in Myanmar, who have fled to seek refuge in Bangladesh's Cox Bazar, are especially vulnerable as their shelters are made of dilapidated structures, such as tarps or bamboo.

Did Remal cause a power outage?

  • Millions of people are without electricity in the affected areas after authorities cut off power supplies to prevent accidents. Downed trees and structures further disrupted power lines.
  • An hour after landfall, there were reports of damaged transformers and at least 356 electric poles uprooted, according to West Bengal Power Minister Aroop Biswas.

Is climate change intensifying cyclones in South Asia?

  • Cyclones are a very complex type of natural disaster, making their trends difficult to quantify.
  • The frequency of cyclones has decreased over the years, and a report from NASA's Climate Simulation Center posits that the number of tropical cyclones will decrease in the future due to a warming climate.
  • However, more intense cyclones are expected to occur in the northern Bay of Bengal, affecting India, Bangladesh and Myanmar, due to rising temperatures, NASA's February 2024 report predicts.

Where is Cyclone Remal now?

  • The IMD posted on east of Kolkata and 90 kilometers northeast of Canning in West Bengal.
  • On Monday morning, the cyclone weakened to a cyclonic storm, with wind speeds of approximately 80 to 90 kilometers per hour (50 to 60 mph).
  • Kolkata airport and Indian railways have also resumed operations.
  • However, India's National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) is yet to release an update confirming that it is safe to go out into vulnerable areas.
  • An NDMA bulletin on Sunday advised residents in the affected areas to stay indoors.

Where is Cyclone Remal likely to move next?

  • The IMD release added that the cyclone is likely to initially move “northeastwards” and then northeastwards inland before gradually weakening further.



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