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Chris Mooney is a visiting associate in the Center for Collaborative History at Princeton University and the author of three books, The Republican War on Science, Storm World, and Unscientific America.
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« Still No Weakening for Cyclone Sidr | Main | Cyclone Sidr: Starting to Contemplate the Impact »
Category: Hurricanes
Posted on: November 15, 2007 8:29 AM, by Chris C. Mooney
The Joint Typhoon Warning Center finally gave in and rated the storm at 135 knots--or 155 mile per hour winds. This is the cutoff for Category 5. There may be some weakening by landfall, but what we're expecting is a borderline Cat 4/Cat 5 striking along the path shown above. You've gotta figure the storm surge is going to be more than 20 feet. There are supposed to be vertical evacuations in Bangladesh, but I just don't know what's happening on the ground....
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Comments
So, it has started: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20071115/wl_sthasia_afp/sasiabangladeshindiaweatherdisaster;_ylt=AoXDwaHeqNKUVa_FVdlfMXQBxg8F
Posted by: Sven Cahling | November 15, 2007 9:44 AM
Chris,
I know it may be a bit early for this, but how does this storm compare in size, strength, the usual meterics, to others?
Posted by: greg laden | November 15, 2007 10:51 AM
Greg,
It's a Category 5 at its peak, that's never good. And looks like a very strong Category 4 at landfall. Jeff Masters, who has more expertise than I, says, "Sidr is the second strongest cyclone to make landfall in Bangladesh since reliable record keeping began in 1877." In this region it seems you are going to get a storm surge upwards of twenty feet in such a storm.
Posted by: Chris C. Mooney | November 15, 2007 11:04 AM
I understand that large parts of Bangladesh are scarcely two metres above sea level; in fact, half of the country is less than 10 metres above sea level. It is largely river delta from the confluence of three great rivers. That makes it difficult to head for higher ground - in many places, there is none. So people have to depend on finding reinforced structures.
Posted by: Monado | November 15, 2007 2:28 PM
It is may be our bad luck to get the cyclone staff every decade. Oh ! The weather ! We are third world in sense of economy as well as weather ! Global warming !
Is is only because of Global warming ?
Or something else ?
What we should do ?
We can't just leave the coumtry ?
We have to live here with this destiny ?
We have to survive. We just need a moral support from rest of the world.
Someone from Bangladesh.
Posted by: Nurul Alam | November 16, 2007 4:55 AM