Cyclone Ramal Sweeps India and Bangladesh

Authorities in Bangladesh and India reported that at least 16 people have died and thousands of homes have been destroyed due to windstorms and strong waves in the low-lying coasts of both countries that caused Cyclone Remal.

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According to the Minister for Disaster Management of Bangladesh, Mohibbur Rahman, at least ten people died in that country.

The government administrator of Barisal district in Bangladesh, Showkat Ali, said that at least seven people "were killed by the collapse of houses or walls", and the remaining three belong to the districts of Khulan and Chittagong.

Meanwhile, in India six deaths have been recorded so far in the West Bengal region, distributed as follows: one in Calcutta, two women in the 24th district of South Parganas, one in Panihati in the 24th district of North Parganas and a father-son duo in Memari in Eastern Medinipur.

In both nations thousands of people are reported without access to electricity service, before the fall of trees and poles product of the strong winds..

Similarly, authorities reported that 800,000 Bangladeshis left the nation’s coast, and in India, more than 150,000 people took shelter away from the sea.

The official of the Department of Meteorology of Bangladesh, Muhammad Abul Kalam Mallik, reported that at the highest point of the cyclone, winds reached speeds of up to 110 kilometers per hour.

Government administrator Helal Mahmud said two people died in Khulan district, adding that "the cyclone damaged more than 123,000 homes in the division, including some 31,000 completely damaged".

In India, statistics show that some 29,500 houses in 24 blocks and 79 municipal districts, mainly in the coastal areas of southern West Bengal, were partially damaged.

Damaged coastal areas lie one or two metres above sea level, so storms could cause losses in municipalities.

Given the persistence of the rains, more than 40,000 people remain in anti-cyclone shelters, while authorities warn that the death figures could change in the coming hours.