Preparing to face possible cyclone
A cyclonic system that developed near India's remote Andaman Islands on Wednesday could intensify and hit the coast of Bangladesh, said State Minister for Disaster Management and Relief Md Enamur Rahman yesterday.
"The system is expected to turn into a depression on May 9 and will intensify gradually," he said at a media briefing in Dhaka.
"No prediction has been made yet over the landfall of the system. The authorities will be able to estimate the storm's landfall time in Bangladesh after the low pressure and cyclone are formed," he added.
If the system develops into a storm, it will be called "Cyclone Asani", a name given by Sri Lanka.
The cyclone is likely to move northwestwards via Odisha and West Bengal and hit Satkhira in Bangladesh, said the state minister.
The government is taking all-out preparation to cope with the situation, if the storm hits Bangladesh's coast, he told journalists.
Talking to The Daily Star around 6:30pm yesterday, an official of Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) said the cyclonic system may turn into a low pressure over Andaman Sea and adjoining area within the next 24 hours.
"But it is uncertain whether it will develop into a cyclone or not. Even, the pressure may lose its strengthen in the sea," said Hafizur Rahman, a meteorologist of BMD.
"If it finally turns into a storm, it is quite uncertain where the landfall will happen. The landfall may happen in India or Bangladesh or any other neighbouring countries," the meteorologist added.
Meanwhile, the government of the eastern Indian state of Odisha yesterday sounded an alert of a possible cyclone over the Bay of Bengal as a cyclonic circulation over South Andaman Sea and neighbourhood persisted and could result in a depression with a wind speed of up to 75km per hour by May 8.
The authorities in Odisha asked all the 18 districts to be prepared for any situation, reports The Daily Star's New Delhi correspondent, quoting Asian News International (ANI).
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