DHAKA, May 27: At least 10 people were killed and millions were left without power as severe cyclone ‘Remal’ lashed the coasts of Bangladesh with devastating winds of up to 120 kph and storm surges, inundating hundreds of villages.
‘Remal’ weakened into a cyclonic storm on Monday morning, sustaining wind speeds of 80-90 kilometres per hour, following landfall around midnight of Sunday, the Met Department said.
The department said that the weather system, which lay 150 km northeast of Sagar Island at 5.30 am, brought torrential rain and moved northeastwards to weaken further into a cyclonic storm.
‘Remal’ is the first cyclone in the Bay of Bengal ahead of this year’s monsoon season, which runs from June to September. The cyclone was named Remal (meaning sand in Arabic) by Oman, according to a system of naming cyclones in the Indian Ocean region.
It lashed Bangladesh’s coastlines, levelling thousands of homesteads, smashing seawalls, and flooding scores of villages and towns along the southwestern shorelines.
Bangladesh’s junior minister for disaster management and relief, Mohibur Rahman, said that 10 people were killed in the official count so far, while the storm entirely damaged over 35 households and affected over 3.75 million people.
“At least 10 people were killed in the cyclone,” Rahman told reporters.
However, according to most media tally, the toll had reached 16, as details of the damage continued to be reported from coastlines.
The cyclone has been accompanied by gusty winds and heavy rains, impacting areas including Barisal, Bhola, Patuakhali, Satkhira, and Chattogram.
Officials and journalists in coastal areas said that of those deceased, some drowned while others were crushed when their houses collapsed.
According to the Met Office, southwestern Patuakhali town was the worst hit by the severe storm. Wind speed there rose to 111 kilometres per hour, with tidal surges accompanying the storm, flooding and ravaging huge infrastructure, including thatched houses.
“The crashing waves virtually washed away everything as it proceeded through the area, particularly the Khepupara sub-district. . . it became extremely fierce for over half an hour from 1.30 am after the midnight,” a cyclone control room official in Patuakhali said.
One person was washed away in the town by a storm surge while returning home to bring his sister and aunt to a shelter.
Another person died in Satkhira after falling as he ran for cover during the storm.
Five people were killed in Barishal, Bhola and Chattogram, Dhaka-based Somoy TV reported.
In Mongla, a trawler sank, leaving two people, including a child, missing.
The cyclone-driven surges also breached a major town protection embankment on Manpura Island, inundating most parts of the island.
The Met Office said that after ravaging the southwestern coastlines, the “severe cyclone” weakened into a storm but continued to cause heavy downpours in most parts of Bangladesh, including Dhaka, which also suffered from electricity disruptions.
Power Minister officials said that nearly 3 million people in Bangladesh were without electricity. Residents claimed their cell phone services were inoperative as the devices could not be recharged.
The rural power authority has cut off electricity to 15 million people in coastal areas to minimise the damage from ‘Remal’, news portal BD News reported.
The power outages have lasted over 12 hours in some areas, but electricity workers are preparing to restore the connections once the storm subsides.
Biswanath Sikder, chief engineer (planning and operation) of the Bangladesh Rural Electrification Board, said the storm was still ongoing as of 9:45 am in the coastal areas.
He estimated that a total of about 15 million people in the affected areas were without power.
According to the Met Office, Cyclone Remal has moved northward, crossing the coast and is currently positioned near Koira in Khulna.
The cyclone is expected to continue its northward trajectory, bringing increased rainfall and weakening to a lower intensity within the next 2-3 hours, the Met Department of Bangladesh said in a special bulletin at 3:30 am on Monday.
“It (cyclone) is likely to move northeastwards further and weaken into a land depression by giving precipitation,” the latest bulletin of the Met office said, urging fishing boats to stay in safe shelters until Tuesday.
‘Remal’ hit Bangladesh coasts after 8 in the evening, packing speeds of up to 135 kilometres per hour, hitting the southern Mongla seaport and the adjoining Sagar Islands in India’s West Bengal late on Sunday before weakening on Monday morning.
According to the Indian Met Department, it sustained wind speeds of 80-90 kilometres per hour, following landfall around midnight Sunday.
Heavy to very heavy rainfall with wind gusts on Monday morning braced most of Bangladesh under the influence of the storm.
Despite accurate forecasts and increased public awareness, weak embankments failed to withstand the cyclone’s force, inundating many villages.
Coastal areas experienced waves as high as 5 to 6 feet, exacerbating the destruction, according to the Met Office.
The storm on Sunday forced authorities to close the country’s three seaports and the airport in the second-largest city Chattogram, BSS News reported.
Maritime ports of Payra and Mongla have been advised to keep hoisted great danger signal no 10.
As the cyclone progresses, the sea and coastal environments are predicted to gradually calm, although heavy rains and gusty winds persist in Dhaka and its surrounding areas.
Fishing boats and trawlers operating in the North Bay of Bengal and the deep sea have been advised to remain in a safe harbour until further notice.
Payra and Mongla ports have been instructed to hoist danger signal number 10, indicating severe conditions.
The Meteorological Department has warned that due to the cyclone’s intensity and the air pressure difference, coastal districts and their remote islands and chars could face wind-driven tides 8-12 feet above normal.
Cyclone-prone Bangladesh designed most schools in coastal regions as cyclone shelters alongside dedicating structures to enable people to take refuge during surges and many of these multi-storey facilities have space for sheltering cattle as well.
Officials said on the low-lying Bhashan Char island, which is home to 36,000 Rohingya refugees from Myanmar, 57 cyclone centres were readied.
On Sunday, Bangladesh evacuated nearly 800,000 people from vulnerable areas.
Rahman said volunteers have been deployed to move the evacuees to up to 9,000 cyclone shelters. The government also closed all schools in the region until further notice.
Bangladesh shut down the airport in the southeastern city of Chattogram and cancelled all domestic flights to and from Cox’s Bazar.
Bangladesh also suspended loading and unloading in the country’s largest main seaport in Chittagong and moved more than a dozen ships from jetties to the deep sea as a precaution. (PTI)
Follow our WhatsApp channel
