Extremely severe cyclone Ammphan has made landfall on Bangladesh’s coastal region.
“Arms of Amphan reached our coast after 4pm Wednesday,” said Shahinul Islam, a meteorologist at the Bangladesh Meteorological Department.
“The cyclone’s centre will touch the land and then the tail. It will take several hours to cross the coastal districts,” he told Dhaka Tribune’s Mehedi Al Amin.
Shahinul added: “Now we are measuring the wind speed from different points. Soon the information will be available.”
Ahead of the landfall, the government had evacuated more than two million people and 517,432 livestock to 14,636 shelter centres in 19 coastal districts by Wednesday afternoon.
Earlier, Amphan made landfall near the coastal districts of West Bengal in India with a wind speed of 155 to 165kmph gusting to 185kmph, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.
There were no immediate reports of any casualties.
Indian Meteorological Department Chief Mrutyunjay Mohapatra told a press briefing in the afternoon that the eye of cyclone was expected to touch land anytime now.
The cyclone’s intensity near its centre as the landfall process started was recorded at 160-170 kmph, gusting to 190 kmph, he said.
Heavy rain and gale wind have affected several districts in the Gangetic West Bengal since morning and the intensity of the downpour and wind increased gradually with every passing hour, according to media reports.
BMD in a bulletin earlier in the afternoon had said that Amphan was likely to make landfall on the coast between 4pm and 8pm Wednesday, with a 180-200 kph wind speed at its centre.
Maritime ports Mongla and Payra were advised to hoist great danger signal No 10 while great danger signal No 9 for Chittagong and Cox’s Bazar ports.
At 3pm on Wednesday, the cyclone was centred at about 420 km southwest off Chittagong port, 430 km southwest off Cox’s Bazar port, 200 km southwest off Mongla port and 250 km southwest off Payra port, said the bulleting.
Amphan is likely to move in a north-north-easterly direction and may start crossing West Bengal-Bangladesh coast during 4pm to 8pm, it said.
The maximum sustained wind speed within 80 kms of the cyclone centre is about 180 kph rising to 200 kph in gusts/squalls. The sea will remain very high near the cyclone centre.
Warnings
The coastal districts of Satkhira, Khulna, Bagerhat, Jhalakathi, Pirojpur, Barguna, Patuakhali, Bhola, Barisal, Lakshmipur, Chandpur and their offshore islands and chars will come under great danger signal number No 10, said the BMB bulletin.
Coastal districts of Noakhali, Feni, Chittagong and Cox’s Bazar and their offshore islands and chars will come under great danger signal number No 9.
Under the influence of the cyclone and the end day of last quarter moon, the low-lying areas of the coastal districts of Satkhira, Khulna, Bagerhat, Jhalakathi, Pirojpur, Barguna, Patuakhali, Bhola, Barisal, Lakshmipur, Chandpur, Noakhali, Feni, Chittagong and their offshore islands and chars are likely to be inundated by storm surge of 10-15 feet height above normal astronomical tide.
Coastal districts Satkhira, Khulna, Bagerhat, Jhalakathi, Pirojpur, Barguna, Patuakhali, Bhola, Barisal, Lakshmipur, Chandpur, Noakhali, Feni, Chittagong and their offshore islands and chars are likely to experience wind speed up to 140-160 kph in gusts/ squalls with heavy to very heavy falls during the passage of the cyclone.
All fishing boats and trawlers over North Bay and deep sea have been advised to take shelter immediately and will remain in shelter till further notice.
