History of cyclones in Bangladesh and countermeasures - Remal

Shifat Info

1 Jun, 2024

Cyclone is a common occurrence in Bangladesh. People have always been interested in knowing about this cyclone, so today's post will discuss in detail about the history of cyclones in Bangladesh and what can be done to deal with them. Please read the entire post carefully.

History of cyclones in Bangladesh and countermeasures - Remal

A part of people of Bangladesh is affected by cyclones every year. Bangladesh has a long history of cyclones but many of us do not know about the measures to deal with them. So let's get to the main discussion without delay.

Introduction

Cyclone hits Bangladesh every year. It is a very dangerous natural disaster for this country. It usually originates in the Bay of Bengal region and affects coastal areas. Cyclones cause loss of life, property damage as well as extreme natural disasters.

Read more: Earthquake and its intensity in different parts of Bangladesh including Dhaka

Coastal areas of Bangladesh such as Chittagong, Cox's Bazar, Patuakhali, Barguna and Khulna are more prone to such risks. A lot of casualties can also be seen in it. In today's discussion we will learn about Cyclone, History of Cyclone in Bangladesh, Actions to be taken and recent occurrence of Rimal Cyclone.

What is a cyclone?

A cyclone is a tropical storm or atmospheric disturbance caused by the violent swirling motion of air. It originates from tropical seas. Cyclones cause heavy rainfall, strong winds and tidal waves. In other words, a cyclone is a strong storm formed by air forming over warm ocean and rotating around a low pressure center. Its speed can be 62 kilometers per hour or more.

History of Cyclone in Bangladesh

Nature behaves like this from time to time to maintain its balance. Although there are about 80 cyclones in the world every year, almost the cyclones disappear into the sea, but those that hit the coastal areas are a little more severe. History has witnessed such a terrible cyclone hit the coast of Bangladesh. Below are some notable cyclones that have occurred in the history of Bangladesh,

Cyclone of 1876

On October 31, 1876, Bakerganj Cyclone, which is also known as 'The Great Bakerganj 1876', hit the coastal region of Bangladesh. It is known as one of the deadliest cyclones in history. It hits in Barisal which was the Bakerganj district of Bengal in British India at the time. Its wind speed was 220 kilometers per hour or 137 miles per hour. A tidal wave of 10 to 15 feet was created and nearly 2 lakh people lost their lives. As a result of this cyclone, the lives of thousands of people were disrupted and many properties were lost.

Cyclone of 1970

On 13 November 1970, one of the deadliest cyclones in history hit the then East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) known as the Bhola Cyclone. Its wind speed was 185 kilometers per hour or 115 miles per hour. It is classified as a 'Category 3' cyclone on the Simpson scale. During this time, high tides of 20 to 30 feet are generated and inundate the coastal areas. An estimated 350,000 people died and millions were left homeless along with the destruction of infrastructure.

Cyclone of 1991

The cyclone that hit the southeastern part of Bangladesh on April 29, 1991 has been marked as a natural disaster in history. It is known as "1991 Chittagong Cyclone". It had a top speed of 250 km/h or 155 mph and was a category 5 super cyclone. The cyclone caused 20 to 25 feet high tides and 1,38,000 people were killed and left 1 crore homeless.

Cyclone of 2007

On 15 November 2007, "Cyclone Sidor" hit the coastal region of Bangladesh. It was extremely powerful and destructive causing massive loss of life and property. Its speed was 240 kilometers per hour or 10 miles. The cyclone generated 10 to 20 feet of tidal waves that caused widespread flooding in coastal areas.

About 3,447 people lost their lives and thousands went missing in this cyclone. Nine million people were left homeless and crops, homes and infrastructure were destroyed. During this time, about 600,000 tons of rice was wasted in Bangladesh. About 242,000 domestic animals including poultry died.

Cyclone of 2009

The cyclone that hit the coastal region of Bangladesh on 25 May 2009 is known as "Cyclone Aila". Its speed was 120 to 150 kilometers per hour or 75 to 93 miles per hour. This cyclone formed on May 21 of the same year 950 km south of Kolkata, India. It is classified as a category 1 cyclone.

This resulted in tidal surges of 10 to 13 feet high, causing widespread flooding of coastal areas. An estimated 190 people lost their lives and 7 lakh people were left homeless. Along with this, more than 10,000 cattle died and nearly 3 lakh acres of agricultural land was damaged.

Cyclone of 2013

"Cyclone Mahasen" in 2013, hit the coastal region of Bangladesh. It struck on 16 May 2013. It had sustained winds of 100 kilometers per hour or 62 miles per hour and was a Category 1 cyclone. Its epicenter was near Chittagong region. During this time, tidal waves of 3 to 6 feet height are generated. 17 people lost their lives and many were injured. Like other cyclones, crops, houses and other infrastructure are severely damaged in this cyclone.

Cyclone of 2017

Cyclone "Mora" hit the coastal region of Bangladesh on May 30, 2017. Its speed was 117 kilometers or 73 miles per hour. It is classified as a category 1 cyclone. This resulted in tidal surges of 2 to 2 feet high, causing extensive flooding of coastal areas. An estimated 9 people lost their lives and hundreds were injured. Millions of people lost their homes. A lot of crops, houses and infrastructure were damaged.

Cyclone of 2019

The major cyclone that hit in 2019 was "Cyclone Bulbul". It first hit the coast of South Twenty-four Parganas in West Bengal, India on 9 November. Then it enters Bangladesh by land. But the damage is minimal. In this same year another cyclone hit named "Fani". It had a wind speed of 70 km/h and heavy rain.

The cyclone killed 17 people and destroyed about 63,000 hectares of crops. On the other hand, the speed of Bulbul was 120 km per hour. 25 people were killed and thousands of houses were destroyed. 14% of the country's total agricultural land is affected.

Cyclone 2020

Cyclone Ampan in Bangladesh on May 20, 2020 was a severe natural disaster that caused extensive damage to the country's coastal areas. The wind speed was 150 km per hour which caused heavy rain and tidal waves. About 10 million people were affected and 500,000 lost their homes. About 350,000 houses were damaged and 176,000 hectares of agricultural land and fish farms were destroyed.

Cyclone of 2022

Bangladesh was hit by Cyclone Sitrang in 2022. The cyclone hit on October 24 and was quite strong. About 35 people were killed in this cyclone and 2000 houses were damaged. In addition, about 8 million people were left without electricity. Floods and heavy rains occurred in various places including the capital Dhaka. About 3.5 billion rupees were lost in the agricultural sector.

Cyclone of 2023

Cyclone Mokha hits Bangladesh in 2023. This cyclone that hit in May caused extensive damage in the coastal areas of Bangladesh and Myanmar border areas. On May 14, the cyclone crossed the Cox's Bazar coast causing heavy rains and strong winds. Wind speed were 175 miles per hour. About 3,34,000 people were affected and there were landslides and destruction of houses. As a result of this cyclone, 33 Rohingya refugee camps in Cox's Bazar suffered extensive damage.

Description of Cyclone Remal

Among History of cyclones in Bangladesh Recently Cyclone Remal in Bay of Bengal in May 2024 has had a great impact on the coastal areas of Bangladesh. The cyclone, which started as a deep depression on May 25, rapidly strengthened and hit the coast of Bangladesh on May 26. The central velocity of the cyclone was 88 kmph to 130 kmph.

As a result of this cyclone, coastal areas such as Satkhira, Barguna, Patuakhali, Chittagong and Cox's Bazar caused severe storms and tidal waves. Several coastal districts experienced tidal surges of 3 to 5 feet and rivers and low-lying areas were inundated due to heavy rainfall. Also, 10 people died due to this cyclone in Barisal division and extensive damage was done in many places.

About 4,000 cyclone shelters were prepared by the government of Bangladesh in coastal areas and 80,000 volunteers were working in the field. This cyclone hit both Bangladesh and West Bengal.

Things to do in dealing with cyclones in Bangladesh

Due to geographical location, Bangladesh is a country of natural disasters such as floods, droughts, landslides, tornadoes, cold currents, cyclones, tidal waves etc. Cyclones and floods cause the most loss of life and property among these, so the previous and subsequent actions to avoid these losses or reduce the amount of losses are given below,

Actions before cyclones and floods

Ensuring provision of shelter for people and livestock in disaster prone areas.
Planting trees in front of houses or village roads.
Houses should be built on high ground and on solid foundations. In that case iron or wooden pillars can be used. It is better not to use Corrugated iron sheet for the roof of the house because Corrugated iron sheet is easily blown away in a cyclone.
During high tide, salty and dirty water enters the tubewell, so try to install the tubewell at a higher place.
Make it a habit to always listen to the weather forecast during the day.
Carry a radio with you when boarding boats, launches and trawlers.
Always keep basic medical equipment at home.
Due to floods, our agricultural land is damaged a lot, so we have to make arrangements to save the seeds of crops in advance.
Coconuts, banana trees, bamboos, palms, Chinese Albizia and other hardy plants should be planted from now to avoid the damage of floods in the future because these trees reduce the wind velocity of cyclones.
You can keep a paved hole inside the house so that you can hide the necessary things in the hole during the cyclone.
Keep essential dry food such as bread, crackers, biscuits etc. at home.
Try to retain water in post-cyclone rains.

Actions to be taken after cyclone and flood forecast

Check the condition of your house to make sure it is standing on solid ground.
Keep in touch with CPP volunteers and try to follow their advice fully.
Evacuate household members to a safe place as soon as the forecast is received.
In the hole you make before the cyclone, put necessary things like dry wood, water, filter, sugar, dal, rice, match box, regularly used medicines, books, bandages, cotton, orsaline etc.
Listen to more cyclone news on the radio during this time.
Wrap documents and money in polythene and keep them with you.
Cover the mouth of the tubewell with polythene very well to prevent salt or dirty water from entering.

What to do after cyclones and floods

During this time, many trees fall on the road. It will be our responsibility to remove those trees quickly so that the volunteer team can reach them quickly.
Help people move from shelters to their homes and give shelter to those whose homes have been destroyed.
Help rescue workers for rescue people stuck in canals, rivers, ponds and seas or any other place.
At this time, people should not wait for NGO or government help. Help each other as much as you can.
Even if the storm seems a little less, do not leave the house. Storms may come again at high speed from the other direction.
Capture rainwater or boil water from rivers and ponds to drink.
Provide relief to women, old, disabled and sick people first.
During this time crop land is damaged a lot so make arrangements to restore crop land very quickly.

Author's comments

Cyclones in Bangladesh are one of the country's major natural disasters, constantly threatening coastal areas. However, the country's capacity to deal with cyclones has been significantly enhanced through improved forecasting, awareness raising and disaster preparedness programmes.

In the future, it will be possible to reduce the damage caused by cyclones by adopting more advanced technology and effective measures. If you like today's post, share it with your friends and comment if you have any questions. Thanks.