Cyclone Aila case study

Cyclone Aila was a severe tropical cyclone that struck Bangladesh on the ​25​th​ ​May 2009​. The cyclone's intense rainfall ​(120mm of rain in a few hours), ​very ​strong winds (270km/h) and large storm surge ​caused ​widespread flooding and ​devastation ​across Bangladesh.

1. CYCLONE: A CASE STUDY OF AILA WEST BENGAL AND BANGLADESH PRESENTED BY : ANAND KUMAR RAI ROLL NO.: GEO/20/405 UNIV. ROLL NO.: 200113500006 MENTOR’S NAME: DR. SUSMITA BHOWMIK ST. XAVIER’S COLLEGE BURDWAN DEPARTMENT OF GEOGRAPHY 1

2. NATURAL HAZARD Natural hazards are defined as environmental phenomena that have the potential to impact societies and the human environment. These should not be confused with other types of hazards, such as manmade hazards. For example, a flood resulting from changes in river flows is a natural hazard, whereas flooding due to a dam failure is considered a manmade hazard, and therefore excluded from the National Risk Index. 2

3. Cyclone In India, cyclones are classified by: Strength of associated winds, Storm surges Exceptional rainfall occurrences . Cyclones are caused by atmospheric disturbances around a low-pressure area distinguished by swift and often destructive air circulation. Cyclones are usually accompanied by violent storms and bad weather. Image Source: Cyclone Aila - Wikipedia 3

4. OVERVIEW OF AILA DESCRIPTION Formed : May 25, 2009 Dissipated : May 27, 2009 Highest winds 3-minute sustained: 110 km/h (70 mph) 1-minute sustained : 120 km/h (75 mph ) Fatalities / missing : 339 total INJURED : OVER 800 PEOPLE Damage : At least $1 billion (2009 USD) Areas affected : India , Bangladesh Damage area : coastal area of bengal 4

5. Meteorological history Late on May 21, 2009, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center reported that a Tropical Disturbance had persisted about 950 kilometres (590 mi) to the south of  Kolkata , in India and had developed within the  Southwest Monsoon . During May 22, 2009, the disturbance developed further with a  Tropical Cyclone  a Cyclonic storm and had been named as Aila whilst located about 350 kilometres (220 mi) to the southeast of  Sagar Island . Aila became a severe cyclonic storm at 06UTC on May 25 and made landfall at its peak intensity (60kt, 967hPa) between 08 and 09UTC. The disturbance at this time had a broad and poorly organized area of deep convection, which was located to the southeast of the low level circulation center which had consolidated into a single circulation during the previous 12 hours 5

6. PREPARATIONS Officials in India evacuated thousands of residents from coastal areas ahead of Cyclone Aila . In addition, several warning alerts were issued before the cyclone hit  Kolkata ; however, no alarm bells were rung . In the  Bhola District  of Bangladesh, an estimated 500,000 people evacuated to higher areas and shelters as Aila neared landfall.  Tourists were advised to stay in their hotels due to the short amount of time to prepare for the storm. 6

7. Affected area of cyclone in west B engal The areas and districts affected by the cyclone in West Bengal include East Midnapore Howrah , Hooghly, Burdwan South 24 Parganas and Kolkata. In the  West Bengal  state, more than 100,000 people were left homeless as a result of Aila 7

8. NEWS and ARTICLE Cyclone Ailia  was not a strong storm, but its heavy rains and storm surges were enough to swamp the Mouths of the Ganges River in Bangladesh and India. Some islands in the Bay of Bengal and the mangrove forests of the Sundarbans region were inundated and still cut off from relief and rescue workers as of May 29, 2009. Clean drinking water was an acute problem: tidal surges continued to wash salty water inland over damaged levees, and salt water cannot be decontaminated with regular water purification tablets, according to  reports from BBC news. Aila almost completely fills this true-color image from May 25, 2009. The storm stretches from the Bay of Bengal deep into India, Bangladesh, and Burma (Myanmar). Image of the Day for May 29, 2009 Instrument: Terra — MODIS 8

9. May 11, 2009 May 28, 2009 This pair of images shows flooding in India and Bangladesh on May 28, 2009, following the landfall of Cyclone Aila . Instrument: Aqua — MODIS Floods from Cyclone Aila in India and Bangladesh 9

10. A flooded village is seen in this aerial view taken from an Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopter in the Cyclone-hit area of Patharpatima Island in the Sundarbans delta, about 100 km (62 miles) south of Kolkata, India on May 27, 2009. AILA CYCLONE : IMAGES 10

11. PHOTOS : CYCLONE AILA 11

12. DESTRUCTION COUNT INDIA In India, at least 149 people were killed two by electrocution, and hundreds others were left homeless as torrential rains led to flooding. High winds uprooted numerous trees, blocking roads throughout the region . [ More than 15,000 people in eight villages were reportedly isolated from relief crews by severe flooding.  At least 18 of the 45 fatalities in  West Bengal  were in Kolkata, the region where Aila made landfall. All transit systems in the city of Kolkata were halted and daily life was at a standstill due to the storm . [ The areas and districts affected by the cyclone in West Bengal include East Midnapore , Howrah, Hooghly, Burdwan , South 24 Parganas and Kolkata .  In the  West Bengal  state , more than 100,000 people were left homeless as a result of Aila.At least 100 river embankments were breached by storm surge produced by the cyclone. BANGLADESH Torrential rains from Aila resulted in 190 fatalities and at least 7,000 injuries across the  Khulna  and  Satkhira   Districts.Across 11 of the nation's 64 districts, approximately 600,000 thatched homes, 8,800 km (5,500 mi) of roads, 1,000 km (620 mi) of embankments, and 123,000 hectares (300,000 acres) of land were damaged or destroyed.An estimated 58,950 animals were killed by the storm with up to 50,000 deer missing. On the island of Nizum Dwip , nearly all structures were severely damaged or destroyed, leaving roughly 20,000 people homeless 12

13. Environmental impact ON SUNDARBANS The  Sunderbans , a region which houses 265 of the endangered  Bengal tigers , was inundated with 6.1 m (20  ft ) of water.  Dozens of the tigers are feared to have drowned in Aila's storm surge along with deer and crocodiles. On 27 May, conservationists have begun a search for the tigers throughout the forest. The search teams were supplied with fresh drinking water for the tigers as their natural water source was inundated with salt water from Aila's storm surge Sundarbans National Park - Wikipedia 13

14. Table 1. Cyclone Aila -affected areas and the number of affected households. 14

15. Government Steps State Government in co-operation with the central counterparts took up the rescue and the rehabilitation program. Army was deployed to the affected areas The next day, the army used helicopters to provide food to the affected population. About 2,500 troops were deployed to West Bengal on May 26, 2009. Several naval relief teams were deployed to the Sunderbans region where an estimated 400,000 people were marooned by flooding Roughly 100 relief camps were established in West Bengal shortly after the storm passed .  On 27 May, 400 troops form the  National Disaster Response Force  were deployed to the state for relief operations .  The Government of India released  Rs. 10 million (US$209,775) in relief funds to the affected areas on 26 May. Two MI-17 helicopters were also sent to air-drop food supplies to the worst affected areas in West Bengal . 15

16. * Farhana S. (2011). Suitability of pond sand filters as safe drinking water solution in storm surge prone areas of bangladesh:n case study of post- aila situation in shyamnogar , satkhira district, Khulna. * Sharmin S.; Naznin R. (2013), Impacts of Cyclone Aila on Educational Institutions: A Study of South-Western Bangladesh.Springer . * Mitra A; Haldar P.; Banerjee K. (2010). Changes of selected hydrological parameters in Hooghly estuary in response to a severe tropical cyclone ( Aila ), Indian Jounal of Geo-Marine Sciences, Vol. 40(1). pp 32-36. * ADRA (April 2011). Impact Evaluation of the Post Aifa Recovery Project in Sundarbans, West Bengal, India: Executive Summary . * Hasan, M,, ( july , 2010), Climate induced displacement:case study of cyclone Aila in the southwest coastal region of Bangladesh . * Mallick , B; Rahaman K. R.; Vogt J. (2011). Coastal livelihood and physical infrastructure in Bangladesh after cyclone Aila,Springer . R eferences 16

17. THANK YOU 17