The periphery of cyclonic storm “Midhili” on Friday crossed the Mongla-Payra coast near Khepupara as of 12pm, according to the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD).
While a 60-year-old man lost his life when a tree branch fell on him amid the cyclone in Chattogram's Sandwip upazila on Friday, Sandwip UNO Samrat Khisa confirmed the matter.
The deceased was identified as Abdul Wahab.
As of Friday 12pm, the cyclone was centred about 310km west-southwest of Chattogram Port, 310km west-southwest of Cox's Bazar port, 145km south-southwest of Mongla Port and 150km southwest of Payra Port.
The maximum sustained wind speed within 54km of the cyclone centre is about 62kph rising to 88kph in gusts or squalls. The sea remains very rough near the cyclone centre, according to BMD.
The cyclone was likely to move north-northeastward further and may complete crossing the coast by Friday evening.
Maritime ports of Payra and Mongla have been advised to keep hoisted danger signal no 7 until further notice.
Meanwhile, maritime ports of Cox's Bazar and Chattogram has been advised to keep hoisted danger signal no 6.
Under the peripheral effect of the cyclonic storm, heavy (44-88mm) to very heavy (89mm) rainfall with gusty or squally wind persists over north bay, their offshore islands, chars and coastal areas of Bangladesh.
According to BMD, the low-lying areas of the coastal districts of Cox's Bazar, Chattogram, Noakhali, Laxmipur, Feni, Barguna, Bhola, Patuakhali, Bagherhat, Khulna, Satkhira and their offshore islands and chars are likely to be inundated by wind-driven surge of 3-5 feet above normal astronomical tide due to the peripheral effect of the cyclone and steep pressure gradient.
Under the influence of the cyclone, Dhaka, Khulna, Barishal, Chattogram and Sylhet divisions are likely to experience heavy (44-88mm) to very heavy (289mm) rainfall.
And due to very heavy rainfall, landslides may occur at places over the hilly regions of Chattogram Division, according to the BMD bulletin.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) suspended operations of all types of river vessels on all inland and coastal routes from 10am until further notice.
Heavy rain persist across coastal region
The coastal areas of Bhola and Khulna is experiencing heavy rainfall with gusty winds due to influence of the cyclonic storm “Midhili” over the Bay of Bengal.
Since Friday morning, there have been moderate to heavy rains accompanied by strong gusty winds, causing waterlogging in many parts of the coastal. Meanwhile, the Meghna River remains very rough due to the impact of the approaching cyclonic storm.
Moniruzzaman, in charge of the Bhola meteorological office, said the district recorded 86 mm of rainfall in the last 24 hours. Gusts of up to 8 nauticals were also reported.
Meanwhile, an emergency meeting of the district disaster management committee was held at the deputy commissioner's conference room at 9pm on Thursday.
During the meeting, Deputy Commissioner Arifuzzaman highlighted the extensive preparations undertaken by the district administration to tackle the cyclone.
A total of 869 cyclone shelters and 12 Mujib Killa have been readied across the district.
Additionally, over 1,000 educational institutions have been notified to be on standby for potential use as shelters, according to DC Arifuzzaman.
Eight control rooms have been set up across seven upazilas, with a total of 13,860 Cyclone Preparedness Program (CPP) volunteers on standby. Medical teams have also been assembled.
Meanwhile, there are 341 tonnes of rice and Tk 20 lakh in cash available for relief purpose in the deputy commissioner's fund to tackle the approaching disaster.
The deputy commissioner said preparations have been made to relocate one lakh residents from isolated and vulnerable char areas of the district to safer locations.
The process of issuing warnings has commenced to ensure the safe return of deep-sea fishing trawlers, said DC Arifuzzaman.
Meanwhile, Khulna received 38mm of rainfall from 6am to 10am on Friday morning. With the passage of time, the speed of rain and wind is increasing, according to met officials.
Amirul Azad, the senior meteorologist leading the Khulna Meteorological Office, reported that Khulna is experiencing moderate to heavy rainfall across the district due to the impact of cyclone Midhili.
The coastal areas are experiencing winds blowing at a speed of 10kph, he said.
Meanwhile, BIWTA has suspended all launch operations from Barisal.
Besides, the district has been witnessing continuous rain since last night, causing low-lying areas to become waterlogged.
In the last 24 hours, Barishal has recorded 71 mm of rainfall.
Confirming the suspension of the launch, Assistant Director of Naval Safety and Traffic Management Department of Barishal River Port, Riyad Hossain said Barishal River Port has been advised to keep hoisted danger signal number 2.
609 shelters ready in Ctg
Chattogram district administration has prepared 609 cyclone shelters to deal with cyclone “Midhili” over the Bay of Bengal.
Deputy Commissioner Abul Bashar Mohammad Fakhruzzaman provided the information at an emergency preparedness meeting held on Thursday night.
The DC confirmed the readiness of 609 cyclone shelters to tackle the approaching cyclone.
Among these, 116 are situated within Chattogram city, while 493 are spread across the Chattogram district.
Moreover, directives have been issued to upazila nirbahi officers and district secondary and primary education officers to identify and prepare various educational institutions as additional shelter facilities, said the deputy commissioner.
On the instructions of the deputy commissioner, the district relief and rehabilitation officer presented the relief situation in the meeting.
The district relief and rehabilitation officers said the district administration currently possesses cash amounting to Tk 22.30 lakh for relief purposes, 244 tonnes of rice, Tk 6.80 lakh for cattle feed, Tk 6.80 lakh for baby food, 472 bags of dry food, 1000 blankets, and 47 thousand ORsaline in stock.
The meeting was attended by heads of various district-level government departments, representatives of city corporations, the upazila chairman's office, the upazila nirbahi officers, the assistant commissioner (land), upazila project implementation officer, various NGOs, media workers, and activists of voluntary organizations.
The deputy commissioner has directed to open control rooms in emergency service providers, especially hospitals, electricity, gas, water and city corporations, organize emergency meetings of disaster management committees at the upazila level, and take the activities of all departments as per their respective SOP.
Apart from this, various NGOs, voluntary organisations, media have been instructed to participate in disaster management, to continue the awareness activities in the coastal and mountainous areas, to contact the district relief and rehabilitation officer and the district administration's control room number in case of any emergency.
The deputy commissioner said all sorts of preparations have been made to address any potential disaster.
