Super Cyclonic Storm Amphan

Super Cyclonic Storm Amphan

According to meteorology, cyclone is a large scale of mass that rotates around a strong centre of low atmospheric pressure. It is characterised by strong winds, thunderstorms and heavy rainfall. When a storm develops over the Indian Ocean it is referred to as tropical cyclones or severe cyclonic storms. It was also the 3rd Super Cyclone that hit West Bengal since 1582, after 1737 and 1833.

Super Cyclonic Storm Amphan was a powerful and deadly tropical cyclone that caused widespread damage in Eastern India, West Bengal to be specific, and also Bangladesh in May 2020. It was the strongest tropical cyclone to strike the Ganges Delta since Sadr of the 2007 season and the first super cyclonic storm to occur in the Bay of Bengal since the 1999 Odisha cyclone.

On 18 May, at approximately 12:00 UTC, Amphan reached its peak intensity with 3-minute sustained wind speeds of 240 km/h (150 mph), 1-minute sustained wind speeds of 260 km/h (160 mph), and a minimum central barometric pressure of 925 mbar (27.32 inHg). The storm began an eyewall replacement cycle shortly after it reached its peak intensity, but the continued effects of dry air and wind shear disrupted this process and caused Amphan to gradually weaken as it paralleled the eastern coastline of India. On 20 May, between 10:00 and 11:00 UTC, the cyclone made landfall in West Bengal. At the time, the JTWC estimated Amphan's 1-minute sustained winds to be 155 km/h (100 mph). Amphan rapidly weakened once inland and dissipated shortly thereafter.Coastal areas in West Bengal comprising East Midnapur, North 24 Parganas, South 24 Parganas, Kolkata, Hooghly and Howrah as well as Odisha were affected by the cyclone. It also caused significant destruction in Bangladesh

Amphan is a severe cyclonic storm that is set to hit the coast of West Bengal's Digha and Hatia Islands of Bangladesh during the afternoon or evening of May 20. The tropical cyclone had intensified into a super cyclonic storm between May 17 and 18, according to IMD. At least 19 teams of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been deployed in West Bengal in view of the approaching cyclone. The cyclone Amphan comes a year after cyclone 'Fani' on May 3, 2019 that claimed the lives of 64 people.

Army support has been called for, NDRF and SDRF team has been deployed, railways, ports and most of the damaged areas as the local workers unable to complete the work or because of proper skills . In most of the areas of Kolkata, people suffered for food, electricity and water. Damaged was so big, government couldn’t restore electricity and water for 5 long days.

Cyclone Amphan, hit West Bengal on May 20 claiming 86 lives so far and affecting over 10 million people in the eastern Indian state. The storm in West Bengal caused massive damage to standing crops, thousands of trees were uprooted, and power and water supply was interrupted in the state capital Kolkata.

Over 28% of Sunderbans damaged in Cyclone Amphan, 16,000 trees were damaged in Kolkata. As per Chief Minister 12,000 sq km forests had been “destroyed “. The Indian Sunderbans , an area of South of the Dampier Hodges line, is spread over 9,630 sq km , of which the mangrove forest accounts for 4,236 sq km.