Severe cyclone Mocha makes landfall, 200 kmph wind lashes coastal areas
Bangladesh and Myanmar braced as the severe cyclone Mocha made landfall in Bangladesh and the North Myanmar coast on Sunday afternoon.
New Delhi: Bangladesh and Myanmar braced as the severe cyclone Mocha started to hit the coastal areas on Sunday afternoon. Heavy rains and powerful gusty winds up to 200 kmph lashed the coasts of Myanmar and Bangladesh.
As per meteorologists, the wind speed in the Bay of Bengal could reach 200 kmph, and an alert has been sounded for Cox Bazar seaport, Chattagram, and Payra ports in Bangladesh.
The powerful cyclone Mocha could bring sea surges of up to 12 feet (4 metres) and packing winds of up to 210 kph (130 mph), affecting more than 2 million people directly in its path, most of them in Myanmar’s Rakhine and Chin states, Reuters reported.
It is very likely to move north-eastward and cross Southeast Bangladesh and North Myanmar coasts between Cox’s Bazar (Bangladesh) and Kyaukpyu (Myanmar) close to Sittwe (Myanmar) around 06 00 UTC of 14th May 2023 tomorrow as an extremely severe cyclonic storm with a maximum sustained wind speed of 170-180 kmph gusting to 200 kmph, the IMD forecast also said.
In West Bengal’s South 24 Parganas, civil defence teams have been deployed at Bakkhali Sea Beach as Cyclone Mocha’ intensifies into an extremely severe cyclonic storm.
They stated that members of civil defence teams are constantly warning the public as well as tourists to remain alert and avoid coming to the beach or 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, said.
Earlier, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) also deployed 8 teams and 200 rescuers in West Bengal’s Digha after warnings about cyclone Mocha’ intensifying into a severe storm.
“We’ve deployed 8 teams. 200 rescuers of NDRF deployed on the ground and 100 rescuers on standby,” NDRF officials said earlier.
Ms Kalinga