10 people died, over 150,000 houses damaged: State minister

The severe cyclone Remal which made landfall in Bangladesh’s coastal area on Sunday night has so far claimed 10 lives, said state minister for disaster management and relief Md. Mohibur Rahman.

Besides, 150,457 houses were damaged during the storm. Of these, 35,483 houses were fully damaged in 107 unions and 914 municipalities, said the state minister while speaking at a press briefing held at the Secretariat on Monday.

The deaths were reported from Khulna, Satkhira, Barishal, Patuakhali, Bhola and Chattogram districts.

Among the deceased, three died in Bhola and Barishal districts each, and one each in Satkhira, Khulna, Chattogram and Patuakhali districts.

Nineteen districts have been affected during the storm, he said. These are Khulna, Satkhira, Bagerhat, Jhalakathi, Barishal, Patuakhali, Pirojpur, Barguna, Bhola, Feni, Cox’s Bazar, Chattogram, Noakhali, Laxmipur, Chandpur, Narail, Gopalganj, Shariatpur and Jashore.

A total of 9,424 shelters have been opened in the coastal districts of the country and over 800,000 people took shelter there, he said.

Besides, 52,146 domestic animals were also housed there.

He also claimed that no major damage had occurred due to massive preparation taken by the ministry following the directives of the prime minister.

Meanwhile, a total of 1,471 medical teams were formed to provide treatment to the people in the cyclone-hit areas and of them, 1,400 remain active.

Tk 68.5 million has been allocated to the affected people. Tk 38.5 million, 5,500 tonnes of rice, 5,000 dry foods, Tk 15 million for baby food and Tk 15 million for fodder have been distributed in 15 districts, said the minister.

Talking about the prime minister’s visit to the cyclone affected areas, the state minister said, “We have heard that and for this, contact was made with the Prime Minister’s Office. We’ll let you know when the programme is finalised.”

Cyclone Remal completed its landfall and weakened to a land depression over Bangladesh on Monday, according to the Bangladesh Meteorological Department.