Cox's Bazaar, Bangladesh: Bangladesh has evacuated at least 350,000 people as a cyclone lashed coastal areas on Tuesday, officials said, causing havoc in refugee camps set up for Rohingya Muslims who have fled violence in neighbouring Myanmar. Cyclone Mora struck the islands of Saint Martin and Teknaf in the coastal district of Cox's Bazar, where some 200,000 people were evacuated to shelters. In Chittagong district, about 150,000 people were evacuated.
The islands are a few miles from the Myanmar border, and camps set up in Cox's Bazar had provided refuge for about 200,000 Rohingyas Muslims from Myanmar.
Shamsul Alam, a Rohingya community leader, told Reuters that damage in different camps was severe with almost all the 10,000 thatched huts in the Balukhali and Kutupalong camps destroyed.
"Most of the temporary houses in the camps have been flattened," Alam said.
Omar Farukh, a community leader in Kutapalong camp, said conditions were dire: "Now we're in the open air." But weather officials said the cyclone was not as bad as they had feared. "The severity was less than the apprehension," Shamsuddin Ahmed, a weather official based in Chittagong said.
Officials in Chittagong reported winds gusting up to 135 kph (85 mph), and said low-lying coastal areas were flooded by a storm surge with waves 2 metres (7 feet) high.
The cyclone was expected to weaken in Bangladesh by late morning as it moved inland towards India where authorities have warned of heavy rain in the northeastern states of Tripura, Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.
The cyclone formed after monsoon rains triggered floods and landslides in Sri Lanka, off India's southern tip, which have killed at least 180 people in recent days, authorities said.
In the eastern Indian state of Bihar, 24 people have been killed in recent days, either by lightning or in collapsed dwellings.
(Writing by Simon Cameron-Moore; Editing by Robert Birsel)
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
The islands are a few miles from the Myanmar border, and camps set up in Cox's Bazar had provided refuge for about 200,000 Rohingyas Muslims from Myanmar.
Shamsul Alam, a Rohingya community leader, told Reuters that damage in different camps was severe with almost all the 10,000 thatched huts in the Balukhali and Kutupalong camps destroyed.
"Most of the temporary houses in the camps have been flattened," Alam said.
Officials in Chittagong reported winds gusting up to 135 kph (85 mph), and said low-lying coastal areas were flooded by a storm surge with waves 2 metres (7 feet) high.
Advertisement
The cyclone formed after monsoon rains triggered floods and landslides in Sri Lanka, off India's southern tip, which have killed at least 180 people in recent days, authorities said.
Advertisement
(Writing by Simon Cameron-Moore; Editing by Robert Birsel)
© Thomson Reuters 2017
Advertisement
COMMENTS
Advertisement
"Avoid Travel": India Issues Advisory For Nationals In Bangladesh Amid Unrest In BCCI's Strict Rule For Test Selection, Three India Stars Get Exception Bangladesh Orders Nationwide School Closures After Violent Student Protests Why BJP Lost Lok Sabha Polls In Uttar Pradesh - 6 Reasons In Party Report World's Largest Isolated Tribe Makes Rare Appearance In New Footage "Re-Exam Only On Concrete Footing": Supreme Court On NEET-UG Row Nissan X-Trail Unveiled Ahead Of India Launch "Avoid Travel": India Issues Advisory For Nationals In Bangladesh Amid Unrest 'Dark Comets' May Pose Bigger Threat Than Previously Thought To Earth Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.