Weather

Citation

(1999), "Weather", Disaster Prevention and Management, Vol. 8 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/dpm.1999.07308bac.002

Weather

Weather

8 April 1998 ­ Tehran, Iran

The death toll in a week of flooding across Iran has risen to 84, state-run Tehran radio said today. It said the floods, caused by some of the heaviest rains in the past 30 years, caused damage estimated at around 292 billion rials ($97.3 million) in nine provinces ranging from south-western Iran to the north-east. The floods damaged many roads, 85,000 hectares of farmland, 11,200 homes and killed more than 7,600 cattle, the radio said. Heavy rains in the north-east caused the Tajan river, on the border with Turkmenistan, to overflow. It destroyed bridges and part of a railway connecting Iran to the former Soviet republic and the rest of Central Asia, the Iranian news agency IRNA said. The flooding also seriously damaged 1,000 houses in the Sarakhs region, being developed by Iran as a free trade zone to boost commercial ties with Central Asia, the agency said.

12 April 1998 ­ Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania

Some 90 miners are feared dead in northern Tanzania following flash floods that caused pits to collapse, the state-owned Sunday News reported. It said the accident happened at a Tanzanite mine near the northern farming town of Arusha. Miners were trapped as deep as 300 metres below the surface after 14 pits collapsed following the floods on Thursday (8 April) night. Two bodies were recovered yesterday. Njoolay said an emergency team comprising the local police, fire brigade, regional water engineer and mines officer had been formed to assist in rescue operations. But efforts were being hampered by continuing heavy rains, Njoolay said.

13 April 1998 - Rescue workers today pulled a fourth body from a mine in northern Tanzania where at least 56 people were killed after flash floods, witnesses said. Rescue workers entered the Mererani mine at Mbuguni south-east of Arusha today in the hope of finding bodies or survivors, witnesses said. But miners and relatives of those feared dead said there appeared little hope of finding survivors after the disaster, and expressed anger at what they called an inadequate government rescue operation. State radio earlier quoted the head of rescue operations as saying 56 people died and 21 were rescued.

15 April 1998 ­ A rescue worker died today as teams using heavy-duty pumps struggled to retrieve bodies from a flooded gemstone mine in northern Tanzania. A mine employee who had joined efforts to rescue an estimated 100 trapped miners died after being overcome by fumes at one of the 15 pits at the Mererani mine. His death brought the confirmed death toll to six. By early this afternoon, only five bodies had been recovered. The accident happened as workers began using two pumps to drain the pits, flooded last Thursday night (9 April) after heavy rains. Augustin Makelele, a mine supervisor, said the team now needed medical equipment for working in the "poisoned environment". Rescue workers had complained of lack of pumps to clear the pits containing at least 56 miners known to have been working underground at the time of the flood. No one is certain of the exact number presumed dead because of lack of records, although officials have said they believe more than 100 miners were trapped.

18 April 1998 ­ Buenos Aires, Argentina

At least ten people were killed in floods in northern Argentina that forced the evacuation of almost 40,000 people, local media reported today. Three people drowned in Corrientes province when a boat rescuing them capsized and two people were killed in Chaco province when their boat overturned, local media reported. Another five deaths from the floods and the evacuation of more than 38,000 people were reported by the interior ministry yesterday. No new rains were predicted in the near future in the worst affected areas but rains in southern Brazil and the upper parts of the Parana River could aggravate problems, the state-run agency Telam said. Some 280,000 were unable to leave their homes because of the floods, which also caused heavy agricultural damage. Authorities in Formosa province estimated up to 80 per cent of its agricultural production had been lost. Santa Fe Province Governor Jorge Obeid said the situation in the northern part of the province was "disastrous, with whole towns under water." Farmers tilling crops such as cotton and rice were hard hit along with cattle ranchers and the milk industry, with damage estimated at more than $500 million. In Santa Fe, damage was estimated at $408 million, with 45 per cent of the province's total area under water. The state-owned Banco de la Nacion dispensed a credit line of up to $10,000 for every agriculture producer hit by the storms. Funds were expected to reach 540 million for Santa Fe province alone.

19 April 1998 ­ Floods in northern Argentina that caused ten deaths forced 55,000 people to be evacuated but weather has improved and the situation was now under control, government officials said today. State-run agency Telam said President Carlos Menem cut short a visit to Santiago and missed the closing there of the Summit of the Americas to attend an emergency meeting in Buenos Aires on the floods situation. Development Secretary Ramon Ortega said after the meeting "the situation is now under control." Private news agency DyN quoted government officials as saying losses amounted to some 5,600 million. Agriculture Secretary Felipe Sola said 43-50 per cent of the cotton harvest was lost.

20 April 1998 ­ Heavy rains in southern Brazil's Pantanal swampland are likely to cause Argentina's northern rivers to swell and flood even more of northern Argentina, a senior government official said today. "The rivers have not gone down, they continue rising," Jorge Lorenzo, national director of Planning and Civil Protection in the Interior Ministry, said. "We're not optimistic with the weather in the Pantanal." Ten people are reported dead, 55,000 have been evacuated and 280,000 affected in the northern provinces of Argentina in the worst flooding since 1983. There are no official figures yet for the estimated damage caused by the floods, but Lorenzo said the latest flooding could push overall costs due to the El Nino weather phenomenon to about $2.5 billion. According to Agriculture Secretary Felipe Sola torrential El Nino rains and resulting floods this year have caused a minimum of 51.5 billion in agriculture losses. In Entre Rios there are between 9,000 and 12,000 evacuees, while in Corrientes there are 14,000 to 18,000. In Santa Fe another 7,800 people were pulled from their homes, while in Chaco the number was 5,700, Lorenzo said. Since Friday evening (17 April) the Argentine office of the Red Cross has been loading trucks with relief supplies including food, baby clothes, diapers, milk powder and mattresses.

21 April 1998 ­ Floods in Argentina that have killed 11 people, forced the evacuation of 65,000 and caused $2.5 billion worth of damage may continue for weeks or months, weather experts said today. "Weather prospects for coming weeks are bad," Agriculture Secretary Felipe Sola said. The Government was introducing tax exemptions and other financial aid for agricultural producers affected by the floods. Economic Policy Secretary Carlos Rodriguez said Argentina was negotiating with the World Bank for a $75 million credit line to cope with the damage. It needed an additional $500 million in loans to prevent future flooding. President Carlos Menem cut short a visit to Chile on Sunday (19 April), missing the closing ceremony of the Summit of the Americas, to fly back to an emergency cabinet meeting in Buenos Aires on the floods. Menem and Interior Minister Carlos Corach will visit the affected areas tomorrow. The Red Cross, private groups and thousands of volunteers are collecting food, clothes and medicines for flooding victims. Vice-President Carlos Ruckauf has urged political parties to suspend campaigning for 1999 general elections and concentrate on helping people affected by the floods.

24 April 1998 ­ Rains eased today in northern Argentina, officials said. Drizzle fell one day after 7.8 inches of rain inundated the region and caused the swollen Parana, Uruguay and Gualeguay rivers to overflow their banks. Yesterday's deluge affected some 300,000 people and destroyed crops and livestock, said Coast Guard official Nestor Kiferling in the town of Goya in Corrientes province. No evacuees have been allowed to return home, Kiferling said. Despite the lighter rain today, the situation was bleak and "getting worse," said a spokesman for the Coast Guard in Buenos Aires. The National Meteorological Service expected only a short break in the weather with new storms predicted for early next week. Argentina's Corrientes province has been the worst hit area with 25,793 people evacuated and another 20,000 waiting to be moved out, according to Telam, the state news agency. In northern Santa Fe, 139,780 head of cattle have been killed and 270 million acres of crops such as sugar cane, soybeans, corn, and cotton have been wiped out, said Kiferling. He also said heavy cotton and rice crop losses have been reported in Formosa, and half the tobacco crop has been ravaged in Misiones. The fruit and milk industries also are suffering losses, said Agriculture Under-secretary Jesus Leguiza.

26 April 1998 ­ Floods in Argentina, which began two weeks ago in the northeast, have spread to Patagonia, in the south, where emergency services said, today, two people had been killed and 12,000 evacuated. Officials providing relief said one of the dead was electrocuted by a power line and the other died while digging a drainage ditch. Interior Minister Carlos Corach, touring the south, said the situation in Chubut province was similar to the situation in the north. It is going to be hard to recover the production, goods, services and quality of life, he said. Rains continued to lash the worst-hit northeast provinces of Corrientes and Chaco, where the swollen rivers Parana and Negro have flooded outlying suburbs of the provincial capital Resistencia and are advancing on the city centre. Fifteen people have been killed and 115,000 evacuated in the northeast because of the floods. Some evacuated homes are reported to have been looted. Many of the dead have been electrocuted by fallen power lines or have died from lack of medical attention. Flood victims complain of having to pay boat-owners $50 to rescue them and their belongings in the absence of official help. With leaden skies over much of north and central Argentina today, meteorological services were forecasting more rain by nightfall. There are no official figures so far for the damage, but the department of Planning and Civil Protection estimates total damage since the El Nino storms began at $1.5 billion.

28 April 1998 ­ Floods in northern Argentina, which have caused 17 deaths and the evacuation of 120,000 people, could force 250,000 more to flee their homes in Resistencia, the capital of Chaco province, an official said today. A makeshift dyke winding more than 18 miles around the city has been built out of dirt and can resist flooding up to nine yards high, city hall official Roberto Benitez said. Road-building equipment is currently being used to bolster the earthnworks surrounding Resistencia to 30 feet high, said Benitez. If water from the River Parana exceeds that, the city may have to be evacuated, he said. The water is already more than seven yards high and is expected to reach about eight yards by Friday (1 May).

29 April 1998 ­ The USA and European Union today offered Argentina emergency help over floods that have killed 19 people and forced more than 120,000 to evacuate. "I have instructed the Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance to send an assessment team to affected areas immediately and to advise our embassy on how the United States might be of assistance," President Bill Clinton told President Carlos Menem in a letter that was circulated to the media. Argentine Defense Minister Jorge Dominguez said British ambassador William Marsden also offered the European Union's help in fighting the floods. Brought on by torrential El Nino rains, flooding started more than two weeks ago in north-east Argentina and has since spread to southern Patagonia. Whole regions have become inaccessible and millions of acres of pasture and crops such as rice and cotton have perished under water. Dominguez said the military was ready to face a situation that could take a turn for the worse over the next few days. In Resistencia, Chaco province, some 250,000 people were prepared to flee their homes if flood water spilled over a makeshift earth dyke that has been thrown up around the city. "In some parts of the country rains have exceeded by 60 per cent the record highs for the century," said Dominguez. The government has asked international organisations for emergency credits worth $875 million and Argentina's Congress was expected to vote late today on an emergency motion to push up public debt $500 million to fight the crisis. Menem has ordered no expense to be spared in funding aid. Hundreds of tonnes of clothes, foodstuffs and medical supplies donated by private companies and the media have been distributed by military aircraft, trains and trucks throughout flood zones.

7 May 1998 ­ Argentina's government said today the floods that forced more than 120,000 people to evacuate their homes and damaged millions of acres of agricultural lands in recent weeks were now under control. "The situation is under control and we now have to work on reconstruction," said Alberto Kohan, President Carlos Menem's chief of staff. The floods have killed 17 people. Rivers swelled over their banks due to El Nino-induced torrential rains in the last three weeks, sparking the worst flooding in the north-east of the country since 1983. But the critical point at the end of last week ­ when waters rose to their highest levels ­ did not result in the scare scenario of 250,000 people in the north-eastern town of Resistencia having to flee their homes. Earth dykes were built around Resistencia to withstand the waters and they proved sufficient to hold them off as the rivers started slowly subsiding at the beginning of this week when the rains abated. People have begun to return to their homes with the figure of evacuees now under 100,000. Officials said until the waters drop completely it will be impossible to quantify the full amount of the damages. Government officials have previously estimated that the total damages caused to the country by the El Nino weather phenomenon was $2.5 billion. Argentina's Congress has approved $500 million in funds to help the provinces hit by the floods and has asked for $875 million in emergency loans from international bodies to repair the damages. The Defense Ministry said in a news release the armed forces still have more than 5,000 personnel working around the clock. It said so far 13,488 tons of clothes, foodstuffs and medical supplies have been distributed to the flood zones.

20 April 1998 ­ Beijing, China

At least 12 people were reported missing at the weekend (18/19 April) after a dust storm packing gale-force winds lashed China's north-western region of Xinjiang, the China Daily reported today. The storm on Saturday swept through ten cities and districts in the remote region, cutting electricity and water supplies and coating the area with yellow dust from nearby deserts, the report said. A report by Xinhua news agency quoted meteorologists as saying the gales were triggered when a cold air mass from Siberia hit a warm front from the Caspian Sea. In Tacheng city, wind-borne rocks shattered windows as the storm caused power and water outages, the agency said. The Xinjiang regional capital, Urumqi, suffered blackouts as trees and power lines were blown down, it said. The strong wind also caused forest fires and fires in residential areas, Xinhua reported from Urumqi.

23 April 1998 ­ Dhaka, Bangladesh

Heavy storms in Bangladesh killed at least 14 people today, including seven who died when a cinema in south-eastern Rangamati hill district partly collapsed, police and officials said. The deaths bring the confirmed toll this week from storms across the country to at least 23. Unofficial sources put the toll at more than 35. Six people were killed and hundreds injured when winds of nearly 100 kph lashed areas around Chittagong. The storm also ravaged a camp for Myanmar refugees in the Cox's Bazar district, killing one 53-year-old woman and injuring 50. Hundreds of thatched houses in the region were also flattened, and trees and electric power poles were uprooted, one Chittagong official said. Storms killed nine people and injured 1,500 in other areas of Bangladesh yesterday, police said. Weather officials said they expected more storms over the next few weeks.

25 April 1998 ­ Chagde, China

Fist-sized hailstones have killed nine people in the central Chinese city of Changde, just one day after vicious hail killed 12 people on the east coast, Xinhua news agency reported today. The hailstorm in Changde on Thursday (23 April) was accompanied by thunderstorms, gales and a tornado that demolished houses in the city and flattened crops in surrounding areas of Hunan province, Xinhua reported. Late on Wednesday (22 April), hail and gale-force winds killed at least 12 people and injured more than 1,000 in two cities in eastern Jiangxi province, Xinhua reported earlier. Hailstones rained for around 30 minutes, drilling deep holes in the soil and cutting a 10-15 km swathe of destruction stretching for 60 km across fertile farmland, Xinhua said. Some 408 houses collapsed and 35,000 homes were badly damaged in the storm that devastated 13,300 hectares of farmland.

28 April 1998 ­ A windstorm pounded China's central Hubei province last week, killing 21 people and injuring about 1,500, officials said today. The one-hour storm last Thursday (23 April) killed more than 2,000 domestic animals, the officials said. They declined to give further details. The semi-official China News Service said 426 people were seriously injured, including 30 students who were hurt when school dormitories collapsed. The storm also toppled trees, damaged houses, destroyed crops, cut electricity, water supply and communications, the news agency said. The local government is helping residents rebuild their homes, it said. Windstorms lashed the southern province of Guangdong, the central provinces of Hunan and Jiangxi and the north-western region of Xinjiang recently, leaving 42 people dead and 20 missing, it said. Economic losses totalled hundreds of millions of yuan (tens of millions of US dollars), the news agency said. It gave no further details.

25 April 1998 ­ Papeete, French Polynesia

At least eight people were killed and 11 injured today as heavy rains from tropical depression "Alan" triggered landslides in French Polynesia, authorities said. At least five people were missing, according to provisional figures from the office of the territory's president. Firemen, gendarmes and soldiers were sent to the affected areas on Raiatea and Tahaa islands. Torrential rains hit the islands yesterday evening as the storm passed to the north. At least four houses were destroyed in Raiatea and a major road was cut in several places. In neighbouring Tahaa, telephones, electricity and radio were cut. There were numerous landslides and the local mayor, Monil Tetuanui, reported several dozen houses hit by water and mud. In Paris, France's Minister for Overseas Territories Jean-Jack Queyranne sent a message of support and said a crisis centre had been set up at the High Commission in Papeete to co-ordinate relief efforts.

27 April 1998 ­ Tajkistan

A report from Moscow, dated 26 April, states: At least 14 people have been killed in floods and landslides triggered by heavy rains in Tajikistan, officials said (Sunday 26 April). The weather over the past two days has cut communication and power-lines and damaged huge areas of farmland, roads and hundreds of homes in southern and south-eastern Tajikistan. Damage is estimated at about $66 million.

29 April 1998 ­ Mud torrents and landslides have killed up to 50 people and caused tens of millions of dollars in damage in Tajikistan, the government said today. The ministry estimated the damage caused since torrential rains hit the country late last week at 50 billion Tajik roubles ($66.3 million). The government said at the weekend 19 people died and 16 were injured when mud torrents and landslides struck several villages in the mountainous eastern Garm region. An official said it was difficult to say precisely how many people had been killed because it was unclear how many villagers lived in the area before the disaster. Losses included around 50,000 hectares of cotton, which was washed away by rain, he said.

29 April 1998 ­ The reported death toll from a series of landslides in Tajikistan has now risen to over 100. The republican emergency situations committee says torrential rains in the south of the republic have caused landslides in valleys near the Pamir mountains, at least 50 people are missing and the death toll could rise further. A local news agency says a number of villages in remote areas have been cut off after floodwaters washed away roads and knocked down telephone cables and power lines. Farms in the Pamir valley in Gam district have sustained extensive damage estimated at over $60 million. Tajik television says an old dam gave way, forcing the evacuation of thousands of villagers. The report did not indicate the exact location of the burst dam.

6 May 1998 ­ Naples, Italy

At least five people were killed and a number were missing today after two days of torrential rains drove rivers of mud and rocks through towns in Italy's southern Campania region, local officials said. At least 20 people were missing after non-stop rain for 48 hours caused rivers to break their banks. Landslides and mudslides invaded low-lying villages, sending 2-metre-high rivers of mud, rocks, trees and debris sweeping down from the hills. Cars floated along village streets, knocking into houses and trees. The hardest hit towns were Sarno, Quindici and Siano, all south of Naples in Salerno and Avellino provinces. A staircase in the hospital of the town of Sarno collapsed after the building was hit by a landslide but it was not clear if there were any victims in that incident. Rescue teams in helicopters were scouring the area for people reported missing. Many people fled to higher ground and rooftops, waiting to be rescued by helicopters or for the rain to subside.

7 May 1998 ­ At least 17 people, including a mother and her three children, were killed and around 50 were missing after torrential rain drove rivers of mud and rocks through towns in southern Italy, civil protection officials said today. Landslides and torrents of mud invaded low-lying villages in the Campania region around Naples after days of rain, sweeping cars and trees in their wake. Around 3,000 people are estimated to be homeless, officials said. "The provisional toll in the disaster in Campania is 17 dead, around 50 missing and some 3,000 left homeless," Italian news agency ANSA reported, quoting civil protection officials.

7 May 1998 ­ At least 33 people were dead and 70 were still missing today after days of downpours drove rivers of mud and rocks through several towns in southern Italy, sweeping away cars and flattening houses. About 2,000 people were left homeless after the mud spewed into low-lying villages in the Campania region around Naples. "The latest toll is 33 dead and 70 still missing, but rescue teams are still working and unfortunately those 70 may become victims," a spokesman at the Interior Ministry's civil protection agency in Rome said. The civil protection agency said 13 people had been killed in Sarno, 60 were missing and about 650 had been left homeless. Temporary shelters were set up in schools, markets and army barracks in nearby towns. In the town of Bracigliano, witnesses saw a mother and three young sons being swept away in a tide of mud, ANSA news agency reported. Five people were reported dead in Quindici. Several roads in the area were closed and thin layers of mud covered parts of some main highways. The government set aside lire 50 billion ($28.6 million) in emergency aid for the region, which has the highest incidence of landslides in the country, and was expected to discuss further measures on Friday. Some experts blamed mass construction, poor infrastructure and lack of planning by local authorities. A railway line was cut in the area just north of Salerno. The rain had stopped in most of southern Italy by late afternoon, and better weather was expected tonight and tomorrow.

8 May 1998 ­ The death toll in mudslides that have devastated several towns in southern Italy rose to 81 today. The civil protection department in Rome said the death toll at 1300 today had risen to 81, the number of missing people was 107, while the homeless stood at 1,570. More than 25 more bodies were found during the night. Days of torrential rain swept mud and topsoil off mountains throughout Campania to create fast-moving rivers of mud which destroyed houses, stripping buildings of their contents and burying whole families. The government was expected to declare a state of emergency this morning in the entire Campania region south of Naples. It was also due to unlock an initial 50 billion lire ($28.7 million) in funds to help house some 2,000 people made homeless. Many of them were spending their second night huddled in temporary shelters set up in schools and markets.

18 May 1998 ­ Beijing, China

Floods triggered by torrential rain have killed at least 20 people in south China in recent weeks and caused yuan 257 million ($31 million) in damage to property, the China Daily said today. To date, floods have caused 15 landslides, damaged 377 hectares of grain field and 660 hectares of cash crops, and destroyed 863 water-control facilities and 20 bridges, the newspaper said. Nanping city in the south-eastern province of Fujian was the hardest hit, with 11 people dead and nearly yuan 200 million worth of damage to property, it said. Storms pounded Nanping for three days, triggering floods which stranded 700 people and cut off rail and road transport, the newspaper said. Nine people have died in Dachuan and Guang'an prefectures in the south-western province of Sichuan, it said. About 1.3 million people in Dachuan prefecture's 153 towns were affected, the newspaper said. More than 90,000 hectares of crops were flooded leaving yuan 57 million in direct damage. Power and water supplies and communications have been cut off in several towns in Dachuan. Rescue workers have been sent to the areas to help victims rebuild their homes, the newspaper said.

20 May 1998 ­ Floods caused by torrential rain have killed 11 people in north-western and southern China, local officials said today. This brought the death toll from floods this year to 31. Xinyuan county in Yili in the north-western region of Xinjiang was hardest hit, a Yili regional government official told Reuters. Ten people were killed in Xinyuan and damage to property was estimated at 30 million yuan, he said. Floods since May 16 have damaged at least 2,409 hectares of land under grain, including wheat and corn, in Yili, the official said. About 29 bridges and some water control facilities were destroyed and more than 400 head of cattle were washed away by floods, he said. In Bama county in the southern region of Guangxi, a hailstorm has killed one person and injured five, a county official said. It damaged more than 2,533 hectares of land under grain and 1,000 hectares of cash crops, destroyed 1,300 houses and more than 170 kilometres of road, he said, without giving further details.

22 May 1998 ­ Floods caused by torrential rains have killed 19 people and injured 24 in the north-western province of Gansu, a local official said today. This latest count brought the death toll from floods to 50 this year. Water inundated five cities in Gansu on Wednesday (May 20), including the provincial capital Lanzhou, toppling 1,257 houses and damaging 5,520 hectares (13,640 acres) of spring wheat and other cash crops, a provincial flood prevention official said. He declined to give an estimate of damage to property, but said flooding hit 263,517 feet of irrigation facilities, as well as 9.3 miles of highway. Xinjiang's hardest-hit county of Xinyuan, near Yili city, has been battered by heavy rains since May 16. Flood waters amaged at least 2 409 hectares of land under grain, including wheat and corn, and caused 30 million yuan ($3.6 million) in property losses, one official in Yili has said. About 29 bridges and some water control facilities were destroyed and more than 400 head of cattle were washed away, according to the official. Floods have killed 20 people in south-eastern Fujian and south-western Sichuan provinces this year and caused damage to property totalling 257 million yuan, state media have said.

20 May 1998 ­ Dhaka, Bangladesh

A severe storm has left at least 10 people dead and 100 injured after battering Bangladesh's south-east coast, volunteers and other monitors said today. Five people died in the Banshkhali area and five more were killed on Maheshkhali island near the resort of Cox's Bazar, volunteers said from Chittagong. Government officials said they were aware of the reported deaths, but had yet to confirm them. "Now the storm is over, we are trying to get detailed information from the devastated areas. Many places have not been reached yet. There may be more casualties," one disaster management official in Chittagong said. The storm, packing winds of up to 145 kph, battered areas around Cox's Bazar and Chittagong around midnight yesterday and early today. It brought heavy rain and threatened the region with a tidal surge, officials said. Kabir Ahmed, president of the Cox's Bazar Fishing Boat Owners Association, expressed concern for some 4,000 fishermen still at sea. "They have yet to return to shore despite frequent storm warnings on the radio. I only hope they will all show up alive," he said. Thousands of houses were damaged, Chittagong officials said. Most casualties were caused by flying debris. "The army has been deployed and other precautions have been taken," one Chittagong disaster management official said. M tanker Banglar Jyoti (8,672 gt, built 1987), anchored in the Bay of Bengal, sent crude oil spilling into the sea as it struck mv Banglar Kallol (12,521 gt, built 1980) during the storm. "The collision caused a hole in the tanker sending crude oil seeping into the sea," one official said. He was unable to give the size of the spillage. A fishing trawler also sank in the Bay of Bengal, having evacuated her crew before the storm, port officials said. Authorities yesterday began to evacuate people from south-eastern coastal areas and put emergency services on high alert. "We have already evacuated some 300,000 people. Rescue teams and relief operators have been kept on maximum alert," one official in the town of Cox's Bazar said. "Tidal surge spawned by the storm has inundated some areas," he said. Meteorological officials had said the storm might trigger a sea surge of up to 12 feet above the normal tide, seriously affecting coastal areas and offshore islands. However, weather officials said the tidal surge was "not as big as was feared" as the storm hit at low tide. "It's too early to know the extent of damage," said an official with the Cyclone Preparedness Centre in Chittagong. According to the CPC, the storm swept some areas in Cox's Bazar and the off-shore islands of Hatia, Sandwip and Nijhumdwip with maximum ferocity. Sea-water whipped up by the storm also inundated the runways at Chittagong airport, forcing suspension of flights, airport officials said. Air force aircraft were flown out of their Chittagong base and navy and cargo vessels had moved to outer anchorages for safety, officials said. Cargo handling at Chittagong and Mongla ports had been suspended since yesterday, he said. The storm damaged some cargo sheds at Chittagong port. The army, paramilitary troops, police and volunteers were ready for emergency rescue and relief operations, officials said. Weather officials said the storm made landfall in Chittagong before weakening into a land depression around 1130 hrs (0530, UTC).

21 May 1998 ­ Hurricane hit the coastal area of Chittagong at approximately 1100, May 20, and had no effect at Mongla port. Mongla port operation returned to normal from 1900, May 20. Damages sustained to m tanker Banglar Jyotil following her collision with mv Banglar Kakoli, not Banglar Kallol as before reported, were as follows: Forward starboard paint locker, along with side self plate, bulwark "fasion" plate totally damaged. Approximate area ten metres by seven metres; Paint locker totally damaged and open to sea; No 1 liferaft and lifebuoy along with brackets totally damaged; Main deck guard rail, starboard, damaged total length forward to aft; Main deck, starboard, has dents abreast cargo tank no 1, about seven metres. Ballast tank no 2, starboard, about five metres, ballast tank no 3, starboard, about ten metres; No 1 cargo tank had leakage and oil spilled, leakage suspected to be below water level; Mix of oil found in ballast water tank no 3 starboard, no 5 centre and no 6 centre.