Amphan, meaning the sky in Thai, wreaks havoc on the earth, along the northern coasts of the Bay of Bengal, which is the biggest bay in the world.
The good news is Amphan has weakened since Tuesday late afternoon. Bad news is it is still gushing towards lands at a speed in excess of 175-185 kmph. You can follow latest Amphan updates here
This is strong enough to uproot trees and disrupt all facilities including power supply and telephone lines besides unleashing fresh human crisis in its area of influence. Coronavirus is still active there.
Amphan is the second storm in a decade to be designated as a super cyclone. The previous one occurred in 1999 in Odisha leaving more than 10,000 people dead.
However, this was not the worst cyclone in the Bay of Bengal. Close to 1.5 lakh people had died in 2008 Nargis cyclone in the Irrawaddy dealt in Myanmar.
Read | Why Bay of Bengal cyclones are more severe
However, the strongest of all cyclones to have occurred in the Bay of Bengal was Bhola, meaning innocent, in 1970. It killed an estimated 5 lakh people as sea water rose up to 10.4 metre high from the coast.
Cyclones are storms caused largely by natural factors. In Bay of Bengal, these are tropical cyclones. Like many other things, cyclones too have a life which follows a particular pattern.
On an average, life span of a tropical cyclone is 9-10 days during which it passes through four stages: formative, immature, mature and decay. Heat is the most essential part of a cyclone’s life.
Leave a Reply