Cyclone ‘Remal’ wreaked havoc along the coasts of Bangladesh, claiming at least seven lives and plunging millions into darkness as power lines were knocked down by devastating winds reaching up to 120 kph and storm surges.
The cyclone, which weakened into a cyclonic storm on May 27 morning, brought sustained wind speeds of 80-90 kilometres per hour after making landfall around midnight on Sunday, according to the Met Department.
“It lay centered at 01:30 hrs IST of today, the 27th May, 2024 over Coastal Bangladesh and adjoining Coastal West Bengal,” said the IMD in a statement. The system is expected to continue moving northwards before veering north-northeastwards and gradually weakening into a Cyclonic Storm by the morning of May 27.
The aftermath of Cyclone ‘Remal’ saw flights resume at Kolkata’s Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Airport on May 27 morning after nearly 20 hours of suspension. Train services also resumed in the South section of Sealdah Division at 9 a.m.
The cyclone left a path of destruction in its wake, with reports of roofs being blown off thatched huts, trees uprooted, and electric poles knocked down, causing widespread disruption in various parts of the state, including Kolkata.
