Indian Navy rescues 33 Bangladeshis as Cyclone Mora kills 9

Dhaka/New Delhi: The Indian Navy has rescued 33 people from choppy seas off Bangladesh which was on Wednesday assessing the extent of loss after Cyclone Mora wreaked havoc and killed at least nine persons and left over 50,000 families homeless.

Indian Navy ship Sumitra rescued 33 people who were found adrift in the Bay of Bengal, about 160 kms from Chittagong.

The Eastern Naval Command is deploying P-81 aircraft as part of its rescue operation in Bangladesh. The cyclone has affected over a quarter million people in the country, the disaster management ministry said.

As many as 286,000 people in 16 coastal districts were affected by the storm, Additional Secretary Golam Mostafa was quoted as saying by bdnews24.

Around 54,500 families have lost properties in the storm as nearly 60,000 houses have been damaged along with 1,592 acres of farmlands, he said.  Cox’s Bazar, the longest unbroken sea beach in the world, bore the brunt of the cyclone, with five people dead, over 20,000 houses destroyed and hundreds of trees uprooted, blocking roads all over the district.

Prime Minister Hasina on Wednesday appreciated her government, saying a quick response mechanism averted severe casualties and damages. (PTI)