Cyclone Amphan – Strongest cyclone ever in Bay of Bengal and the damage it ensued

“Amphan” in Thai language means ‘sky’. On Monday night, Cyclone Amphan became the strongest storm to be recorded in the Bay of Bengal.

Cyclone Amphan made landfall on Wednesday at 2:30 pm between Digha in West Bengal and Hatiya island in Bangladesh, and continued till 7 pm.

Wind speeds of 150-160 km per hour were recorded in the coastal areas after cyclone made its landfall, a senior official at Alipore Center reported. In Kolkata, wind speed of 112 km per hour were recorded.

As the cyclone barreled its way through Bay of Bengal, cutting swathe through Odisha, into Indian state of West Bengal, it claimed 12 lives, flattened houses and uprooted trees.

Evacuation was done in two days which helped limiting the damage to lives. West Bengal moved over 5 lakh people and Odisha around 1.6 lakh to safer places in 3 days. The evacuation was cumbersome due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic crisis.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said, “Cyclone Amphan is a disaster bigger than COVID-19. The whole of the southern part of the state has been affected. We are shocked. It will take three to four days to assess the damage.” She further stated, “The cyclone has affected the electric supply and destroyed many houses, bridges and embankments.”

Bangladesh also evacuated around 2.4 million people by Wednesday.

Cox’s Bazaar, refugee camps in Bangladesh housing thousands of Rohingya refugees were said to be prepared for the cyclone as per the officials.

While Odisha was spared of extensive damage, the Sunderbans region and six districts of south Bengal experienced the worst of Cyclone Amphan.

Sunderbans is a UNESCO world heritage site as it is a habitat of rare and endangered species. Currently there are 99 protected tigers in the Sunderban forest reserve.

Chief wildlife conservator Ravi Kant Sinha reported that they are ready to safeguard tigers. “If anything happens to the tigers, we have our rapid response teams with tranquilization nets and tarps ready to tackle the situation.”