A control room has been set up in the district headquarters though no evacuation was required at the moment as the intensity was expected to be less.
Cyclonic storm Mahasen has moved from Bangladesh hitting the the Northeastern states with heavy rains and strong winds on Thursday.
The Assam Government was the first to issue the cyclone alert, with the State Inland Water Transport shutting down all the ferry services on the Brahmaputra waters for three days.
According to Regional Meterology Centre (RMC), Mahsen is likely to cause heavy showers in southern Assam, Mizoram, Manipur, Tripura and Nagaland for 36 hours along with strong winds ranging at 55 to 75kmp per hour.
A MET official bulletin confirmed, "Damage is expected over south Assam, Mizoram, Manipur, Tripura and Nagaland," adding, "Damage to thatched huts. Breaking of tree branches causing minor damage to power and communication lines also expected."
The Mizoram government issuing precautionary warnings and declared all education institutions to remain closed.
Meanwhile, Ram Muivah, Principal Secretary (Relief and Disaster Management) of Mizoram government, said that in view of the storm precautionary measures - such as providing each district with a sum of ₹15 lakh for the emergency relief of food and shelter to victims - have been taken
The cyclone threat warned people against venturing into the fields and farms till the time cyclone passes over. Dispruptions in electricity are expected with heavy winds possibly leading to felling of trees.
The cyclone created havoc on Bangladesh on Thursday, after it touched down on coastal areas and inundated major areas.
The storm claimed 4 lives in Bangladesh and in Burma. There were reports of a boat carrying 50 displaced refugees being missing.
The wind was moving at a speed of 55 to 65 km per hour and was likely to affect Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland, Tripura and south Assam with heavy rains likely in these areas during the next 48 hours, he said.
Rains and thundershowers were also likely in some other parts of Assam, he added.
बंगलादेश में चक्रवात "महासेन" का 14 लोग शिकार बने
फोटो: EPA |
बंगलादेश में आए चक्रवाती तूफ़ान "महासेन" का 14 लोग शिकार बने हैं और अपने घरों से पलायन करनेवालों की संख्या दस लाख को पार कर गई है।
बंगलादेश के आपदा राहत मंत्री महमूद अली ने कहा है कि सरकार द्वारा सही समय पर ठोस उपाए करने की बदौलत हताहतों की संख्या बहुत ज़्यादा नहीं है। अधिकांश लोग बाढ़ के पानी में डूब गए हैं या तेज़ हवाओं के कारण गिरे पेड़ों के नीचे दबकर मारे गए हैं।
स्थानीय अधिकारियों ने यह भी बताया है कि इसी सप्ताह बंगाल की खाड़ी में लापता हुए म्यांमार के 25 शरणार्थियों के शव मिल गए हैं। उनमें से बीस शव बच्चों के हैं। 28 से अधिक शरणार्थियों के शव अभी तक नहीं मिले है।
श्रीलंका में सात व्यक्ति चक्रवाती तूफ़ान "महासेन" का शिकार बने हैं और वहाँ हज़ारों लोग बेघर हो गए हैं।
Bangladeshi authorities on Friday started delivering aid to thousands of families whose homes were destroyed by Cyclone Mahasen, which officials said killed 17 people.
More than 49,000 thatched houses were destroyed when the cyclone hit the Bay of Bengal late on Thursday, the chief of the country's disaster management department Abdul Wazed told DPA by phone.
Most of the more than 1 million coastal residents who took shelter from the cyclone have returned home and the Government has started door-to-door assessment of the damage caused by the cyclone to support those affected, he said.
"Cash and material support will be provided immediately to those who have lost their homes to build new ones," Mr. Wazed said.
Families in remote areas were given 3,000 taka (38 dollars) and 20 kg of rice, he said adding that the rest of the compensation package will be provided shortly after the assessment is completed.
The government had allocated about 13 million dollars and 5,000 tonnes of rice to help victims.
Many low-lying areas and islands were inundated by a surge during the storm.
Television footage showed many people stranded without homes. Others have started reparing their damaged properties.
Airports, port open
Operations resumed at Bangladesh's two main airports and the port of Chittagong, which were closed in view of the storm.
Friday prayers at mosques were dedicated to the victims.
More than 6 million people are exposed to periodic cyclones in low-lying areas in and around Chittagong, about 300 km south-east of Dhaka.
An early warning system and network of shelters were set up in Bangladesh after a storm killed an estimated 138,000 people in 1991. In 2007, a cyclone killed more than 3,000 people.
Myanmar spared
The cyclone Mahasen had been expected to also hit the west of neighbouring Myanmar, prompting the evacuation of more than 166,000 people in the western State of Rakhine, including some 27,000 refugees from last year's sectarian fighting between Buddhists and Muslim Rohingyas. But the storm weakened and changed course, sparing the Myanmar coast.
"We must say goodbye to Mahasen; she changed her path," Tun Lwin, a former director of Myanmar's Department of Meteorology and Hydrology, said on Thursday.
Bodies recovered from sea
Separately, police have recovered 31 bodies, mostly children, after a ship believed to be carrying Myanmar nationals capsized off the coast of Bangladesh.
"We found 23 children aged between 2 and 12 among the bodies floating in the Bay of Bengal," the acting district police chief of Cox's Bazar, Babul Akhter, told DPA. The rest of the victims were women, he said.
The bodies were decomposing when they were found off Teknaf, which lies on the border between Myanmar and Bangladesh, indicating they died before Cyclone Mahasen hit the area, said Ruhul Amin, chief district administrator.
A Met office bulletin said under the influence of Mahasen, heavy to very heavy showers might occur at most places in southern Assam, Mizoram, Manipur, Tripura and Nagaland during the next 36 hours.
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Besides putting the State Disaster Management Authority and the National Disaster Response Force on high alert, the Assam government on Thursday banned the plying of all kinds of boats and ferries on the Brahmaputra for three days. The governments of Manipur and Mizoram declared holidays for educational institutes on Friday.
"The Met office has informed there is low probability of Mahasen hitting Guwahati, but we are taking all required measures to meet any eventuality," an Assam government spokesperson said. The Kamrup (metro) district administration started a disaster-response toll-free number: 0361-2733052.
A Met office bulletin said under the influence of Mahasen, heavy to very heavy showers might occur at most places in southern Assam, Mizoram, Manipur, Tripura and Nagaland during the next 36 hours. A 55-65 kmph strong wind was expected over the states for the subsequent 24 hours.
"Damage is expected over south Assam, Mizoram, Manipur, Tripura and Nagaland," the bulletin said. "Damage to thatched huts. Breaking of tree branches causing minor damage to power and communication lines also expected."
The Nagaland government issued an alert on Mahasen and called upon the public to be prepared for any kind of disaster.
In Aizawl, the Mizoram government issued a circular to all heads of educational institutions to close on Thursday afternoon and on Friday in view of the impending cyclonic storm.
Vanlalzara, principal scientific officer of the science and technology department, said the squall was likely to spare Aizawl and northern parts of Mizoram. Vanlalzara told mediapersons the squall was likely to weaken on hitting Mizoram, which it would at the southern tip of the state, on Thursday night. But he said unprecedented heavy rain was likely to lash the whole state, justifying the closure of educational institutions.
The Manipur government also ordered the shutdown of all educational institutions on Friday. Manipur principal secretary (relief and disaster management) Ram Muivah sent a message to this effect to all DCs and additional DCs of the state. Muivah told the media the district administrations had been asked to take all possible measures to face the probable consequences of the cyclone.
Deployment of disaster-management personnel would also be done in all districts to tackle the situation, official sources said, while pointing out a hotline had been opened in Manipur as well.
What's in the name?
Cyclone Mahasen is a tropical cyclone that originated in the Indian Ocean. The name Mahasen was given by the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific and the World Meteorological Organization Typhoon Committee after King Mahasen who ruled Sri Lanka from 277 to 304 AD. But Sri Lanka has objected to the use of the Sinhala king's name for a cyclone, saying King Mahasen had brought prosperity to the island and not destruction.
আতঙ্ক ছড়ালেও দুর্বল ছিল মহাসেন
মহাসেন নিয়ে আতঙ্ক তৈরি হয় গোটা বাংলাদেশে৷ মিয়ানমারের রোহিঙ্গাদের মধ্যেও ছড়িয়ে পড়ে আতঙ্ক৷ তবে স্থলভাগে পৌঁছাতে পৌঁছাতে দুর্বল হয়ে যায় মহাসেন৷ তাসত্ত্বেও প্রাণহানির ঘটনা ঘটেছে বিভিন্ন এলাকায়৷
বাংলাদেশের ঘূর্ণিঝড়ের পর চলছে জরুরী ত্রাণের উদ্যোগ
প্রাণহানি তেমন না হলেও, উল্লেখযোগ্য সংখ্যায় ঘরবাড়ি ভেঙ্গেছে। ভারি বৃষ্টির কারণে উপকুলীয় এলাকায় ফসল ও মাছের ক্ষয়ক্ষতি হয়েছে।
সরকারি কর্মকর্তারা অবশ্য বলছেন, ক্ষয়ক্ষতির পুরো চিত্র পেতে সপ্তাহখানেক সময় লাগবে।
ঘূর্ণিঝড় আঘাত হানার পর এ পর্যন্ত অন্তত ১৩ জন নিহত হয়েছে।
সরকারের দুর্যোগ ব্যবস্থাপনা মন্ত্রণালয়ের নিয়ন্ত্রণ কক্ষ থেকে জানানো হয়, ঘূর্ণিঝড়ের আঘাতে বরগুণা জেলায় সাত জন, ভোলায় তিন জন এবং পটুয়াখালিতে দুজন নিহত হন।
এদের বেশিরভাগই ঝড়ে ভেঙ্গে পড়া বাড়ী-ঘর বা গাছ চাপা পড়ে মারা গেছেন।
বঙ্গোপসাগরের ঘুর্ণিঝড় 'মহাসেন' বৃহস্পতিবার ভোরে বাংলাদেশের পটুয়াখালির খেপুপাড়া উপকুলে প্রথম আঘাত হানে। আবহাওয়া দফতর জানায়, এরপর এটি দুর্বল হয়ে এখন ভারতের ত্রিপুরা রাজ্যের দিকে সরে যাচ্ছে।
আবহাওয়া বিভাগের পরিচালক শাহ আলম বিবিসিকে জানান, ঘূর্ণিঝড়টি আঘাত হানার সময় সাগরে ভাটা থাকায় ঝড়ের প্রভাবে কোন জলোচ্ছ্বাস হয়নি। এছাড়া ঘুর্ণিঝড়টিও যথেষ্ট দুর্বল হয়ে পড়েছিল।
কক্সবাজারে মাইকের মাধ্যমে মানুষকে সতর্ক করা হয়েছে
তিনি জানান, গতকাল ঘুর্ণিঝড়টির গতিপথ দেখে মনে হচ্ছিল কক্সবাজার উপকুলের দিকেই এটি আঘাত হানতে পারে। কিন্তু পরে এর পথ ঘুরে যায় এবং পটুয়াখালির খেপুপাড়াতেই এটি প্রথম আঘাত করে।
এর পর এটি স্থলভাগের ওপর দিয়ে চট্টগ্রামের দিকে অগ্রসর হয়। সীতাকুন্ডের ওপর দিয়ে ফেনী এবং খাগড়াছড়ি হয়ে এটি এখন ভারতের উত্তর-পূর্বাঞ্চলীয় রাজ্য ত্রিপুরার দিকে যাচ্ছে।
আবহাওয়া বিভাগের পরিচালক শাহ আলম আরও জানান, ঘুর্ণিঝড়টি যখন বাংলাদেশের স্থলভাগে এসে পৌঁছায় তখন যথেষ্ট দুর্বল হয়ে পড়েছিল। ফলে এতে সেরকম ক্ষয়ক্ষতি হয়নি।
সকাল সাড়ে ৭টার দিকে খেপুপাড়ায় বাতাসের গতিবেগ রেকর্ড করা হয়েছে ঘন্টায় ১০০ কিলোমিটার।
বেশ কয়েকটি জেলার নিম্নাঞ্চল দুই ফুট উচ্চতার পানিতে প্লাবিত হওয়ার খবর দিয়েছে স্থানীয় সংবাদ মাধ্যম। তবে এখনো ক্ষয়ক্ষতির বিস্তারিত বিবরণ পাওয়া যায়নি।
এদিকে ঝড়ের কারণে দক্ষিণাঞ্চলীয় জেলাগুলোর বেশিরভাগ এলাকায় বিদ্যুৎ সরবরাহ বন্ধ রয়েছে।
ঘুর্ণিঝড় মহাসেনের প্রভাবে জলোচ্ছ্বাস হতে পারে এমন আশংকায় বাংলাদেশের উপকুলীয় এলাকার নীচু অঞ্চল থেকে প্রায় দশ লক্ষ মানুষকে ঘুর্ণিঝড় আশ্রয় কেন্দ্রগুলোতে সরিয়ে নেয়া হয়েছিল।
চট্টগ্রামের সমূদ্র এবং বিমান বন্দরও বন্ধ করে দেয়া হয়েছিল।
ঘুর্ণিঝড়ের বিপদ কেটে গেলেও এখনো পর্যন্ত সমূদ্র এবং বিমান বন্দর বন্ধ রয়েছে বলে জানা গেছে।
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