DHAKA, May 26 (Xinhua) -- Bangladesh on Saturday night issued a danger alert over cyclone "Remal" that is heading towards its coastlines.
Muhammad Abdul Kalam Mallik, a meteorologist, said in a special bulletin of Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) that weather forecasters were asked to hoist danger signal No. 6 for Chattogram and Cox's Bazar, a seaside city in southeast Bangladesh, and signal No. 7 for Mongla seaport in southwest Bangladesh.
Bangladeshi Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief has instructed six coastal districts to prepare to tackle cyclone Remal, which is projected to make landfall in the coastal regions by Sunday evening.
Bangladeshi State Minister for Disaster Management and Relief Md Mohibur Rahman said the BMD may raise its storm danger signal to the highest level of 10 Sunday as the cyclone formed in the Bay of Bengal is heading towards Bangladesh coastlines.
Tornadoes and cyclones are common occurrences in Bangladesh. Cyclone Aila, which hit Bangladesh's southwestern coast in May 2009, left at least 179 people dead and over 3 million affected, with an economic loss of 18.85 billion taka (about 160 million U.S. dollars).
In 2007, Cyclone Sidr hit the country's southwestern coastal belt, leaving more than 4,000 people dead or missing. ■
