Roundup: Bangladesh orders evacuation of 2.1 mln people as cyclone nears

Bangladesh ordered the evacuation of some 2.1 million people from its coastline on Friday as the cyclonic storm Roanu in the Bay of Bengal was poised to sweep the country.

Authorities have already raised the danger level to seven out of 10 for low-lying Bangladesh areas.

Bangladesh raised its warning level Friday night as Roanu has brought lashing rains and strong winds to the country's southern coast, home to millions of poverty-ridden people.

The danger signal No. 7 has been sounded for all ports in southeastern Chittagong where fishing boats, trawlers and maritime vessels over the North Bay have been advised to remain in shelter till further notice.

Shah Kamal, secretary of Bangladesh's Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief, told reporters that thousands of cyclone shelters have been kept ready.

"We've asked our local authorities to remain alert so that relocation of some 2.1 million people in 18 coastal districts to cyclone shelters in Bangladesh's coastlines can be done smoothly," he said, adding "Some 50,000 volunteers have been rendering emergency duties,"

Kamal said people of the district's coastal areas were alerted about the disaster through loudspeakers and mobile messages.

He said control rooms have been set up throughout the country to monitor the situation.

Evacuation has been started since Friday afternoon and authorities had been asked to complete it by 8 p.m. local time of the Friday night, he said.

Meteorologists say the cyclone will likely make landfall somewhere near the Myanmar-Bangladesh border by Saturday afternoon.

In its latest statement, Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) said the cyclone storm Roanu over north Bay and adjoining west central Bay moved north-northeastward and now lies over the same area and was centered about 860 km southeast of the country's premier Chittagong seaport, some 242 km southeast of the capital Dhaka.

"It is likely to intensify further and move in a north-northeasterly direction and may cross southern Barisal-southeastern Chittagong coast by afternoon/ evening of May 21."

Port authorities recommended all the vessels to head to safer waters.

An official who preferred to be unnamed said the relevant authorities have been asked to take all movable valuables to safer places.

According to the BMD statement, the low-lying areas of 15 coastal districts of and their offshore islands are likely to be inundated by storm surge of 4-5 feet height above normal astronomical tide.

Many of the coastal districts and their offshore islands are likely to experience wind speed up to 62-88 KPH in gusts/ squalls with the passage of the storm, it said.

Tornado and cyclones killing hundreds of people every year are common occurrences in this calamity-prone South Asian country with a population of about 160 million, whose per capital income is still less than 2,000 U.S. dollars.

Super cyclone Aila lashed southern Bangladesh in May 2009, causing widespread damage and leaving at least 179 people dead.

Powerful cyclone Sidr hit the country's southwestern coastal belt in November 2007, leaving more than 4,000 people dead or missing. Endit