Cyclone Amphan is expected to make landfall on Wednesday afternoon, and forecasters warned of extensive damage from high winds, heavy rainfall, tidal waves and some flooding in crowded cities like Kolkata
The cyclone had winds of 220-230 kilometres per hour and is forecast to weaken before landfall around India’s West Bengal state and Bangladesh.It is the second super cyclone on record that has formed over the Bay of Bengal, said Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, India’s meteorological chief. The first of that classification was the devastating 1999 cyclone in Odisha state that left nearly 10,000 people dead.
The Bangladesh Meteorological Department has also warned that the cyclone could flood vast swaths of southwestern and southern Bangladesh. Several districts in West Bengal will feel the brunt of the storm, said Mohapatra. Flooding is a risk in Kolkata due to crowding and poor drainage, and the storm surge could raise river levels in the Bengal delta, he said.Fishing trawlers and boats in Bay of Bengal have been asked to take shelter until further notice.
Bangladesh’s junior minister for disaster management and relief, Enamur Rahman, said he ordered local authorities to prepare thousands of cyclone shelters and makeshift structures to take more than 5 million people to safety before the cyclone crosses the region.
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