Myanmar’s most powerful cyclone in more than a decade is forecast to make landfall near the Bangladesh border on Sunday, raising the possibility of a major humanitarian disaster.
The storm, Cyclone Mocha, formed over the southern Bay of Bengal on Thursday and has already drenched western Myanmar as it turned northeast on Friday, bringing heavy rain, strong winds and thunderstorms. The storm is forecast to continue through Sunday. Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System.
Myanmar and Bangladesh began deploying thousands of volunteers. Evacuation order From the lowlands, Agence France-Presse reported, a region home to some of the world’s poorest people is particularly vulnerable to increasingly extreme weather events.
Forecasters at the Joint Typhoon Warning Center said the storm’s sustained winds of 60 mph, which were recorded Thursday night, will reach 110 mph by the time it makes landfall. will fall from
If the forecast holds, Mocha will be the strongest typhoon to make landfall in Myanmar since Garry, which packed winds of 143 mph in 2010. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Historical Cyclone Tracks. This storm killed. Minimum 45 people In Myanmar
Cyclones are extremely destructive. The term “cyclone” refers to a type of tropical cyclone—an umbrella term for all such storms, such as hurricanes and typhoons—that form in the Bay of Bengal or the Arabian Sea, both located in the northern Indian Ocean.
Scientists say that Climate change Hurricanes are helped to intensify because unusually warm ocean temperatures provide more energy to fuel tropical cyclones.
Cyclone Mocha comes as a deadly heat wave has been ravaging Southeast Asia for weeks. In April, the temperature in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, reached 105.1 degrees, the highest in six decades. Vientiane, the capital of Laos, reached 108.5 degrees on Saturday, the hottest temperature on record. Thailand has also recorded triple digit temperatures.
The Bay of Bengal, located in the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean, has a long history of large cyclones. Storm Amphan In 2020, more than 80 people died in India and Bangladesh. In 2017, Hurricane Mora In Sri Lanka and Myanmar, thousands of Rohingya refugees have been torn apart and at least killed 194 people.
In 2008, Hurricane Narcissus It became the second deadliest tropical cyclone on record and caused the most deaths in Myanmar 135,000 people. In 2007, Cyclone Sadr Attacked Bangladesh, causing more casualties 3,000 people.
As it continues in Myanmar, the risk of disaster has increased. Civil Warwho has become homeless. About 1.8 million people Across the country, south of the border with Bangladesh is an active combat zone and home to several large refugee camps.
