Three Dead as Bangladesh Storm Subsides
Cyclone Bijli packing winds of up to 90 kmph lashed the coastal areas of Bangladesh, said officials on Saturday. Scores of trees were uprooted and dozens of houses were damaged by the storm before it started showing signs of weakening, several deaths were also reported.
At least three people including a nine-month old baby were killed as the roof of a corrugated tin-shed structure collapsed in the Cox’s Bazar area late on Friday.
The evacuated were later allowed to return home.
“Dozens of thatched houses were destroyed in the cyclone and some trees were uprooted,” Muti-ur-rahman, the local police chief, was quoted as saying by the French news agency AFP.
Rescue officials in Chittagong district say aid workers were still trying to reach remote areas along the 300-kilometre southeastern coast.
The Chittagong port, the biggest in Bangladesh, reopened at midday Saturday, as fishermen set sail after the rough seas subsided.
Chittagong and Cox’s Bazar airports were closed from Friday afternoon and airline officials were battling to clear the backlog of nearly 1000 passengers on Saturday.
Tropical storms and cyclones are a regular feature in Bangladesh and ‘Bijli’ was the first to hit the coastal areas during the 2009 pre-monsoon season.
