Around 28,155 people and 2,736 cattle have been evacuated from Cox's Bazar coast and moved to the cyclone shelters till 6pm on Monday. A total of 576 shelters have been prepared as cyclone Sitrang is heading towards Bangladesh.
Confirming the information, Deputy Commissioner of Cox's Bazar, Mamunur Rashid said: “Nearby educational institutions have also been kept ready to be used as shelters if required.”
“Evacuation of people to shelters is underway to protect lives and property,” he added.
The district administration has asked people to contact the union parishad chairman, upazila nirbahi officer or the control room of the district commissioner's office (phone number: 0341-62222, mobile phone number: 01872615132) for any need.
The deputy commissioner said that everyone's awareness will help us reduce the risk of damage. He urged everyone to help others to get to safety.
Earlier on Sunday afternoon, Cox's Bazar district administration took extensive preparations to deal with Cyclone Sitrang. Authorities have also prepared 576 shelters where as many as 605,275 people can stay if cyclone Sitrang triggers damage. Besides, 104 medical teams are also on standby in cases of emergency.
A further 323 tons of rice, more than Tk8 lakh, 1,198 packages of dry food, 350 cartons of dry cakes, and 400 cartons of digestive biscuits have been stored for the people.
In an emergency preparatory meeting, Mamunur Rashid directed the upazila nirbahi officers to take people to shelters before the storm. Every union has been directed to prepare medical teams, stock sufficient dry food and drinking water, prepare fire services, ambulances and volunteers to carry out rescue operations during disasters and post-cyclone situation. At the same time, it is also directed to take necessary measures to keep the dangerous embankments of the coast under close observation and maintenance.
Cox's Bazar District Relief and Rehabilitation Officer Jahangir Alam said that a sufficient number of volunteer teams, Bangladesh Coast Guard, Naval Police, and 8,600 CPP members, 2,200 volunteers from Bangladesh Red Crescent Society have been prepared to tackle any emergency situation due to the possible cyclone Sitrang.
Dry food and clean water have been arranged for potential evacuees at the Cyclone Centre. Separate arrangements have been made for women, men, pregnant women, children and the disabled.
Meanwhile, 13 trawlers sank in the Bay of Bengal off Saint Martin's island in Teknaf upazila of Cox's Bazar, as the sea was very rough due to the inclement weather triggered by Cyclone Sitrang, reports UNB.
Mojibur Rahman, chairman of Saint Martin's union, said 13 trawlers sank in the bay around 11am and the whereabouts of seven trawlers could not be traced yet.
However, it is not clear how many people went missing due to the incident, although a number of people managed to swim ashore, said Mojibur.
Meanwhile, the local administration has started evacuation work in a bid to move 11,500 people from the coastal areas of the district as 576 cyclone centers were opened to accommodate the residence of the coastal areas, said Mamunur Rashid, deputy commissioner Cox's Bazar district.