Although the Cyclone Yaas did not directly hit Bangladesh, its impact on the country is a matter of concern to us. It made direct landfall in the Indian states of West Bengal, Odisha and Jharkhand.
Media reports on Thursday said at least seven people, including three children, died, many houses were damaged and several embankments washed away by the strong tidal surge in 27 upazilas of nine coastal districts. State Minister for Disaster Management and Relief Enamur Rahman at a press briefing on late Wednesday also confirmed that the cyclone breached embankments in the coastal areas.
As reported, Cyclone Yaas, packing winds gusting to 145 kmph lashed parts of India’s eastern coast on Wednesday, killing at least four people and leaving behind a trail of devastation damaging homes and flooding farmland, and forcing more than 21 lakh people to be evacuated to safe shelters in the three Indian states.
Mentionable that the previous cyclones, including Sidr, Aila and Amphan hit the southwest coast of Bangladesh, leaving the southeast mostly unaffected. But this time the cyclone caused damage to more or less all the coastal districts, particularly Saint Martin’s — the sole coral island of Bangladesh.
Bangladesh has been hit by cyclones on almost a regular basis because of geographical and natural causes. Since we have to live with natural calamities, there is no alternative to build sustainable management. The coastal embankments built in the 1960s of the last century now have turned less effective. This is unfortunate that some embankments damaged by the cyclones Aila and Sidr are not repaired yet. WDB officials are used to making similar excuses, that they have placed project proposals and would start repair works duly after getting necessary approval. Statistics show that most of the 6,000km coastal embankment is now in a dilapidated condition.
The Sundarbans as a natural shield has been protecting a part of Bangladesh effectively. Building embankments and a green belt by afforestation of mangrove trees is also an effective resistance against cyclones.
Climate change as well as sea level are raising the risk of frequent and devastating cyclones in future. We strongly demand that steps must be taken to conserve and protect the natural shields like the Sundarbans. And projects that are marked as threatening the Sundarbans must be dropped. Coastal embankments should be strengthened.
