Cyclone Mocha pummels Bangladesh, Myanmar coasts; forces on high alert in West Bengal

Super cyclone Mocha started striking the coastlines of Bangladesh and Myanmar on Sunday after intensifying into the equivalent of a category-five storm. The powerful cyclone brought heavy rain and winds of up to 195 kph, which could see dangerous flooding in areas around the Bay of Bengal. Storm surges of up to four metres could swamp villages in low-lying areas. There are fears it may hit the world's largest refugee camp, Cox's Bazar, where over one million displaced Muslim Rohingya refugees live in makeshift camps.

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According to the latest bulletin by the Met Office, the cyclone was 250 kilometres south of Cox's Bazar and was now crossing the coast. The low-lying areas of Cox’s Bazar and Chattogram are likely to be inundated by wind-driven tidal surges eight to 12 feet above normal. Tidal surges of five to seven feet above normal are also likely to deluge low-lying parts of Feni, Noakhali, Laxmpur, Chandpur, and Bhola, bdnews24.com reported.

Meteorologists previously warned Mocha could be the most powerful storm seen in Bangladesh in nearly two decades. The category 4 cyclone has intensified into the equivalent of a category-five storm. Around 500,000 people have been evacuated to safer areas. As part of its preparation, Bangladesh shut nearby airports, ordered fisherfolks to suspend their work, and set up 1,500 shelters as people from vulnerable areas were moved to safer spots.

The Bangladesh government, with the support of UN agencies and aid workers, has kept tonnes of dry food and dozens of ambulances ready with mobile medical teams in sprawling camps of the Rohingyas who fled to Bangladesh from Myanmar. The authorities fear that the Mocha-triggered tidal surges could cause massive deluges and landslides, endangering the lives of those residing in hillside camps, where mudslides hit regularly.

The World Meteorological Organisation, a United Nations agency, has warned the super cyclone will cause heavy rain, flooding, and landslides around the coasts of Bangladesh and Myanmar. However, Mohammad Azizur Rahman, director of the Bangladesh Meteorological Department, said the risk for Bangladesh was lower but areas in Myanmar and its southern region were expected to be at greater risk.

Forces on high alert in Bengal's Purba Medinipur & South 24 Parganas

Meanwhile, the Disaster Management Force personnel are on high alert along the coastal areas of Purba Medinipur and South 24 Parganas districts of West Bengal. Seven groups of NDRF personnel including divers are deployed in Digha-Mandarmani coastal areas in Purba Medinipur district as the sea turned choppy. Over 100 state disaster management group personnel have also been deployed in Bakkhali sea beach in South 24 Parganas. Arrangements have been made to evacuate residents of coastal areas in both districts during exigencies as the cyclone is expected to make landfall later in the day.

The breaches in embankments in Sunderbans, in particular, are being plugged on a war footing while police and administration have put in use loudspeakers to warn people from getting near the sea in the afternoon. "Though the weather office has predicted that Cyclone Mocha will dodge past West Bengal, we have taken all precautionary measures in case there is any change. We have shifted people living in the low-lying coastal areas of Purba Medinipur, South 24 Parganas to our safe shelters and adequate relief materials have been sent to these areas," another official told PTI. Fishermen have been warned not to venture into the sea for three days beginning on Friday. The cyclone is very likely to cross southern Bangladesh and northern Myanmar as an extremely severe cyclone storm during the day.

(With inputs from PTI)