Cyclone Mocha hits Bangladesh, barrels towards Myanmar; 5 lakh evacuated

Mocha, which is packing winds of up to 140 knots or 259 kilometres per hour, threatens to wash away coastal villages, create millions of homeless refugees, the US Joint Typhoon Warning Center said and added it is an equivalent to a category 5 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.

Kolkata:Cyclone Mocha, an extremely severe cyclone, made its landfall in Bangladesh near Coxbazar and North Myanmar coast on Sunday afternoon amid frantic calls from Bangladesh authorities for the quick evacuation of people to safe places.

Authorities in Bangladesh on Saturday launched a massive evacuation campaign to relocate close to half a million (five lakh) people along the south-eastern coastlines as a “very dangerous” tropical cyclone is expected to make landfall in the country, threatening the Rohingya refugee camp, the world’s largest. The outermost band of Cyclone Mocha reached the coast of Myanmar’s Rakhine state on Sunday morning, Myanmar’s Meteorological Department said.

"The Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm “Mocha” (pronounced as “Mokha”) over East central Bay of Bengal is very likely to continue to move north-northeastwards and cross southeast Bangladesh and north Myanmar coasts between Cox’s Bazar (Bangladesh) and Kyaukpyu (Myanmar), close to Sittwe (Myanmar) around noon of today, the 14th May, 2023 as an Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm with maximum sustained wind speed of 180-190 kmph gusting to 210 kmph," the weather department in that country said.

Mocha, which is packing winds of up to 140 knots or 259 kilometres per hour, threatens to wash away coastal villages, create millions of homeless refugees, the US Joint Typhoon Warning Center said and added it is an equivalent to a category 5 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Meanwhile, authorities in West Bengal are taking precautionary measures to abort any mayhem along the coastal districts. The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has deployed eight teams and 200 rescuers in West Bengal to deal with any exigencies.

"We have deployed eight teams and 200 rescuers on the ground and 100 rescuers are on standby," said Gurminder Singh, Commandant, 2nd Battalion, NDRF. Indian Coast Guard (ICG) units have been placed on high alert amid the warning of the India Meteorological Department (IMD) for cyclonic storm 'Mocha', said an official statement.

On Saturday, Bangladesh moved to evacuate Rohingya refugees from "risky areas" to community centres and hundreds fled an island, news agency reports said. “Directives have been issued to evacuate to safety hundreds of thousands in our southeastern coastlines.” a disaster management ministry spokesman told PTI. According to weather experts, Cyclone Mocha could bring a deluge of rain, which can trigger landslides. The storm is also predicted to unleash a storm surge up to four meters (13 feet) high, which can inundate low-lying coastal and riverine villages.

Operations stalled in Chittagong

Operations were suspended at Bangladesh's largest seaport- Chittagong. Boat transport and fishing were also halted. "Cyclone 'Mocha' is coming. We have kept the cyclone centres and taken all types of preparations to tackle it," Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said. Bangladeshi authorities have set up 55 shelters at Bhasan Char offshore island, where nearly 30,000 of the Rohingya refugees have been relocated from the mainland.

Alert in Myanmar

Myanmar's junta authorities were supervising evacuations from villages along the Rakhine coast, state media reported. Myanmar Airways International said all its flights to Rakhine state had been suspended until Monday. The Myanmar Red Cross Society said it was “preparing for a major emergency response.” Myanmar said in its weather bulletin that the cyclone was moving toward the coast of Rakhine state near Sittwe, which was put under the highest weather alert. Both Indian and Bangladesh authorities said they were expecting heavy to very heavy rainfall in Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Andaman Sea, parts of India’s remote northeast, and across Bangladesh from Saturday night.