Cyclone floods coastal villages and cuts power in Bangladesh, where 800,000 had evacuated
A cyclone has flooded villages and left hundreds of thousands of people without power after making landfall overnight along the coasts of Bangladesh and India’s West Bengal state
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A cyclone flooded coastal villages and left hundreds of thousands of people without power Monday after making landfall overnight along India's West Bengal state and Bangladesh, where nearly 800,000 residents had evacuated.
Cyclone Remal started lashing Bangladesh’s southern coast late Sunday and was expected to take five to six hours to cross the vast coastal region, Bangladesh's Meteorological Department in Dhaka said early Monday.
TV stations reported that dozens of Bangladeshi coastal villages were flooded as many flood protection embankments were either washed away or damaged by the force of the storm surges. Authorities gave no casualty figures yet, but Dhaka-based Somoy TV reported that at least two people died.
Moderate to heavy rainfall had been forecast in coastal districts in India’s West Bengal state. A 1 meter (3.1 feet) storm surge was expected to flood low-lying coastal areas.
The India Meteorological Department expected Remal to reach maximum wind speeds of up to 120 kilometers per hour (75 mph), with gusts up to 135 kph (85 mph) in the area of West Bengal’s Sagar Island and Bangladesh’s Khepupara region on Sunday night.
On Sunday, Bangladesh evacuated nearly 800,000 people from vulnerable areas. Bangladesh’s junior minister for disaster management and relief, Mohibur 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.
India's Kolkata airport was closed for the day Monday. Bangladesh shut down the airport in the southeastern city of Chattogram and canceled 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.
Remal was the first cyclone in the Bay of Bengal ahead of this year's monsoon season, which runs from June to September.
India’s coasts are often hit by cyclones, but changing climate patterns have increased the storms' intensity, making preparations for natural disasters more urgent.