Cyclone Mocha: Extremely severe cyclonic storm to make landfall today; sea beach in WB's Bakkhali evacuated

Cyclone Mocha: The extremely severe cyclonic storm, Mocha, is set to make landfall today (Sunday, May 14). It is likely to cross between Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar and Myanmar's Kyaukpyu, close to Sittwe, around noon today, according to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD). 

"The ESCS “Mocha” lay centered at 0530hrs IST of 14th May 2023 over Northeast & adjoining Eastcentral Bay of Bengal near lat 18.7N & long 91.5E. It's likely to cross between Cox’s Bazar (Bangladesh) & Kyaukpyu (Myanmar), close to Sittwe (Myanmar) around noon today,” the weather department said.

The authorities have launched a campaign to evacuate people from West Bengal's Sea Beach in Bakkhali. Microphone announcements are going on in the coastal area. The members of Civil defence teams are continuously alerting the public and tourists and asking them to remain alert and avoid coming to the beach and areas close to the sea.

"The condition is not good. We are continuously alerting the public and tourists to be alert and avoid coming to the beach," Anmol Das, a civil defence official, told the news agency ANI.

Earlier, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) deployed 8 teams and 200 rescuers in West Bengal's Digha after warnings about cyclone 'Mocha' intensifying into a severe storm. NDRF officials earlier told ANI, "We've deployed 8 teams. 200 rescuers of NDRF deployed on the ground and 100 rescuers on standby,".

"This is the first cyclone to threaten Myanmar this Monsoon season, and there are grave concerns about the impact, especially on already vulnerable and displaced communities," Al Jazeera reported citing the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) on Friday.

According to the report, more than 230,000 Rakhine residents reside in displaced persons' camps that are "located in low-lying coastal areas susceptible to storm surge."

As per UNOCHA, around six million people in the storm's projected path in Rakhine and the three northwesterly states of Chin, Magway, and Sagaing already required humanitarian aid. The authorities have issued warnings about the risks of flooding, landslides, and a storm surge of 2 to 2.7 metres (6.6 to 8.9 feet) in height.

In Bangladesh, a massive evacuation process is underway to relocate close to half a million people along the southeastern coastlines. The storm is likely to threaten the Rohingya refugee camp, the world's largest. Cyclone Mocha is one of the most powerful cyclones seen in Bangladesh in nearly two decades.

Meteorologists said the storm's path is set to affect Bangladesh's southeastern border district of Cox's Bazar where over a million Rohingya refugees live. Bangladesh has set up 55 shelters at Bhasan Char offshore island, where nearly 30,000 Rohingya refugees have been relocated from the mainland. Bangladesh exclusively dedicated the Bhasan Char to the Rohingyas though most of them live in the mainland of Cox’s Bazar adjacent to Myanmar borders.

An official from Bangladesh's weather department said the cyclone could cause tidal surges from 8 to 12 feet beyond the normal tide. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said the cyclone could disrupt electricity and gas supplies and particularly cause water stagnation in coastal areas. "This cyclone (Mocha) is the most powerful storm since Cyclone Sidr of 2007," chief meteorologist Azizur Rahman said.

The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) on Friday feared that a storm surge of 2-2.5 metres was likely to inundate low-lying areas of North Myanmar as well as parts of Bangladesh where flash floods and landslides were also possible. "It's a very dangerous cyclone and is associated with violent winds. There will be major impacts both ahead and after landfall for potentially hundreds of thousands of the world's most vulnerable people," WMO spokesman Clare Nullis told a press briefing in Geneva.

(With inputs from PTI)

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