Rainstorm lashes Bangladesh, kills 24 persons, collapses power stations (Foreign)

A tropical storm has reportedly lashed Bangladesh, leaving about 24 people dead as well as cutting off 8 million people from power supply across the delta nation, officials and news reports said Tuesday.

It was gathered that victims searched for their belongings amid the debris of their collapsed huts after cyclone Sitrang hit Chittagong, Bangladesh, on Oct. 25, 2022.

According to the government, about 10,000 homes were damaged and more than 6,000 hectares (15,000 acres) of crops were destroyed. Thousands of fishing projects were also washed away.

As reported by the United News agency of Bangladesh, an estimated 20,000 people were marooned because of flooding triggered by tidal surges in the southern coastal district of Bhola.

Tropical Storm Sitrang brewed in the Bay of Bengal before turning north toward Bangladesh’s vast coast, prompting authorities to evacuate hundreds of thousands of people to cyclone shelters Monday. Heavy rains battered the country throughout the day, flooding many areas in the coastal regions across southern and southwestern Bangladesh.

The storm weakened Tuesday afternoon, with maximum sustained wind speeds of 65 kilometers per hour and wind gusts up to 85 kph. The weather office in the capital, Dhaka, which had recorded gusts up to 88 kph Monday evening, said the danger had passed.

(AP)