The ship carrying the Bangladeshis will bring back Myanmar security personnel who crossed the border recently amid fighting with rebels
Cyclone Mocha shows signs of easing as wind speed slows
The Met Office forecast the eye of the storm will make landfall by 3 pm, with the entirety of the cyclone hitting the coast this evening
Published : 14 May 2023, 08:40 AM
Updated : 14 May 2023, 08:40 AM
Cyclone Mocha has lost some strength as the eye of the storm is forecast to make landfall by 3 pm Sunday.
At noon, the eye of the storm was 200 km south of Cox’s Bazar Port, 285 km south-southwest of Chattogram Sea Port, and 345 km south-southeast of Payra Port.
Within 74 km of the storm’s centre, the maximum sustained wind speed was 160 kph, rising to 180 kph in gusts and gales.
The cyclone began crossing the coast between Cox’s Bazar and northern Myanmar on Sunday morning. At 9 am, the eye of the storm was 250 km south of Cox’s Bazar Port. The maximum sustained wind speed was 195 kph within 74 km of the cyclone’s centre and rose to 215 kph in gusts and gales.
The centre of the storm will hit 50-60 km south of Teknaf near Sittwe, the capital of Myanmar’s Rakhine state, said Mohammad Azizur Rahman, director of the Bangladesh Meteorological Department. As a result, the risk to Bangladesh has fallen slightly.
The Cox’s Bazar Port and the rest of the coastal district and its offshore islands are under Great Danger Signal No. 10.
The Chattogram and Payra ports, and the districts of Chattogram, Feni, Noakhali, Luxmipur, Chandpur, Barishal, Bhola, Patuakhali, Jhalakathi, Pirojpur, Borguna, and their offshore islands will be under Greater Danger Signal No. 8.
The low-lying areas of Cox’s Bazar and Chattogram are likely to be inundated by wind-driven tidal surges eight to 12 feet above normal.
Tidal surges of five to seven feet above normal are also likely to inundate low-lying parts of Feni, Noakhali, Laxmpur, Chandpur, and Bhola.
The tide was not particularly high in the morning as it was low tide. Low tide will continue until 11 pm, after which it will start to rise and hit its peak around 4 pm, according to BMD director Azizur.
The Chattogram, Sylhet, and Barishal Divisions are likely to experience heavy to very heavy rainfall and landslides may occur in the hilly parts of Cox’s Bazar, Bandarban, Rangamati, Khagrachhari, and Chattogram.
The Met Office forecast the eye of the storm will make landfall by 3 pm, with the entirety of the cyclone hitting the coast this evening.
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