The deadliest cyclone ever is said to have been the 1970 Bhola cyclone in Bangladesh. Perhaps a half million people died in that storm. That would be more than the number who died in the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.
The Bhola Cyclone was a category 3 storm. Cyclone Sidr, now bearing down on the Bangladesh coast, is probably a Category 5 storm, possibly a strong Category 5. The population of Bangladesh has approximately doubled since 1970. This could potentially add up to a potentially very serious disaster. However, the latest word from Chris Mooney is that the storm is doing most of its damage to a mangrove swamp area.
Keep in mind also that this area is the home of the rare Bengal tiger.
There is this on CNN.
The current sattelite view:
The current satellite view:
The hurricane is heading for a mangrove swamp area that is roughly 150 to 200 km "deep" (south to north). Much of the mangrove coast is heavily populated, but this particular area less so. But the bad news is that this is also a Bengal tiger preserve.
The other bit of bad news is that the mangrove swamp is not going to do as much to weaken the storm, compared to other kinds of landscape, so by the time the storm gets to heavily populated areas it is still going to be bad.
I think Chris Mooney is pointing out that the storm surge is going to be a big problem. A 20 foot surge in an area where high ground is when you knock over a milk box and stand on it, this is a serious consideration. The other looming issue is the huge amount of rain that will fall on the interior. Flooding both in the swamps and inland from the swamps may end up being the most serious effect of this storm.
Physical Science
