12 Dead in West Bengal, Cyclone Amphan damages 5,500 houses

mangaloretoday.com/ yahoo

Kolkatta, May 21, 2020: Amphan, second super cyclone to form over the Bay of Bengal since 1999 and "a double challenge" due to COVID-19, made landfall in West Bengal at 2:30 pm on Wednesday, 20 May, and continues to cause destruction in the form of high-velocity winds and heavy rains.

As of 7 pm, at least 5,500 houses have been damaged, at least 12 people have died and two severely injured in North 24 Parganas said Bibek Vasme, Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO), Basirhat.

According to IMD, the cyclone crossed West Bengal-Bangladesh cost with the wind speed of 155-165 gusting to 185 mph.

The cyclone weakened from super cyclone to "extremely severe cyclonic storm" as it approached the land, leading to a heavy storm in Odisha and West Bengal.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, on Wednesday evening, said that Cyclone Amphan had claimed at least 10-12 lives and ‘completely destroyed’ the districts of North and South 24 Parganas.

She added that the losses incurred could run into hundreds of crores of rupees.