Evacuations as cyclone hits Bangladesh

(10 Nov 2019) A strong cyclone made landfall early on Sunday in Bangladesh, where hundreds of thousands of people have moved to shelters across the low-lying delta nation's vast coastal region. Packing winds of up to 120 kilometres per hour (75 mph) and gusts of up to 130 kph (80 mph), Cyclone Bulbul weakened when it started crossing Bangladesh's southwestern coastal region, dumping incessant rains across the country. No casualties were reported immediately. The weather office said the cyclone slammed ashore at Sagar Island in the southern part of India's West Bengal state. Its path included the southwestern Khulna region, which has the world's largest mangrove forest, the Sundarbans, which straddles the Bangladesh-India border. The weather office said coastal districts were likely to be inundated by storm surges of 1.5-2 metres (5-7 feet) above normal tide because of the impact of the cyclone. Several ships from Bangladesh's navy and coast guard were kept ready in parts of the region for an emergency response, the TV station Independent reported. The storm is also expected to impact parts of northeastern India, where precautions were being taken. Bangladesh, a nation of 160 million people, has a history of violent cyclones. But disaster preparedness programmes in recent decades have upgraded the country's capacity to deal with natural disasters, resulting in fewer casualties. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...