Rescue initiatives should be carried out avoiding the risk of infection

The meteorological department has issued a special notification on Monday morning saying cyclone Amphan is getting stronger in the south-eastern and south-western parts of the Bay of Bengal.

It may intensify and hit the area between Khulna and Chattogram from early morning on Tuesday to Wednesday evening.

At a time when the COVID-19 pandemic is raging across the country and almost the entire administration is busy dealing with the crisis, cyclone Ampan has become another matter of great concern.

Meteorologists are speculating that cyclone Amphan will be extremely strong and cause massive damage. Media reports show the wind velocity is up to 130 kilometres per hour.

It was not known what would be the speed would be at the time of landfall on our ports.

However, all kinds of preparations have to be made to deal with the post- cyclone impact immediately. Coastal areas near the centre of the cyclone have become extremely turbulent.

Therefore, all precautionary measures should be taken to save the people in all types of vessels including fishing boats and trawlers. Everyone from the deep sea should be urged to move closer to the coast.

Those involved in fishing and other activities at sea are generally known for their experience and self-defence techniques in natural disasters such as cyclones and tidal surges.

All they need to do is get the right information and warnings on time. They are often told to go to a safe shelter on a very short notice. In such cases the number of deaths rise.

It must be avoided. For this, the meteorological authorities must perform their responsibilities properly and those who are staying at sea must be prepared to defend themselves.

The people living in the coastal areas that are going to be hit by Amphan should be warned about the movement of the cyclone. If they need to go to the shelter, the shelters have to be prepared.

Considering the risk of coronavirus infection, all people should be encouraged to adhere to personal safety rules.

It will be difficult to maintain physical distance between many people if they take shelter together in a limited space of cyclone shelters. But maximum effort needs to be made to ensure the safety as much as possible.

Everyone, including women, children and the elderly, should at least wear a mask. At the same time, the authorities must keep in mind whether poor people will be able to do so.

The local administration, local government representatives and voluntary organisations can provide masks. Like food and water, masks are also an essential element of their survival now.