Dhaka: Cyclone ‘Mokha’ started hitting the coastal areas of Bangladesh and Myanmar on Sunday. Earlier it had intensified into a Category 5 hurricane. Due to the cyclone, it is raining heavily and winds are blowing at a speed of 195 kilometers per hour. Due to this, dangerous floods can occur in the areas around the Bay of Bengal. There are fears that the storm could hit Bangladesh’s southeastern border district of Cox’s Bazar where more than one million Rohingya refugees live. According to the latest bulletin issued by the Meteorological Department, the cyclone is 250 km from Cox’s Bazar and is now crossing the coast.
According to the bulletin, it was forecast to knock on Sunday afternoon with heavy rain and winds. Wind-driven waves of eight to 12 feet above normal could inundate low-lying areas in Cox’s Bazar and Chittagong. According to reports, waves of five to seven feet higher than normal are expected to inundate low-lying areas of Feni, Noakhali, Laxampur, Chandpur and Bhola. Meteorologists say that ‘Mokha’ is the most powerful to hit Bangladesh in almost two decades. One of the cyclones. The category four cyclone has intensified to that of a category five storm.
About 500,000 people have been evacuated to safer areas. In preparation for the storm, Bangladesh closed airports near the affected area, advising fishermen not to venture into the sea. Officials said the government, in coordination with UN agencies and aid workers, has arranged tons of dry food and kept dozens of ambulances and mobile medical teams on standby at the Rohingya refugee camp.
People and officials are apprehensive that ‘Mokha’ may cause high waves which may cause flash floods and landslides. The World Meteorological Organization, a United Nations agency, has warned that the cyclone will cause heavy rains, floods and landslides along the coasts of Bangladesh and Myanmar. However, Mohammad Aziz-ur-Rahman, director of the Bangladesh Meteorological Department, said the threat to Bangladesh had subsided. He said the threat to Myanmar and its southern region could be greater.
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