Cyclone Nargis
| Extremely severe cyclonic storm ( IMD ) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Category 4 cyclone ( SSHWS ) | |||
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| Emergence | April 27, 2008 | ||
| resolution | May 3, 2008 | ||
|
Peak wind speed |
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| Lowest air pressure | 962 hPa ( mbar ) | ||
| dead | 138,366 total | ||
| Property damage | US $ 10 billion (2008) | ||
|
Affected areas |
Sri Lanka , India , Bangladesh , Myanmar | ||
| Season overview: cyclone season in the northern indica 2008 |
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Cyclone Nargis , also 01B ( JTWC ) and Very Severe Cyclonic Storm Nargis ( IMD ) was the first tropical cyclone of the cyclone season in the northern Indian Ocean in 2008. The storm formed on April 27 in the Bay of Bengal and initially migrated slowly in a north-westerly direction. Nargis turned east after a temporary weakening and was the first cyclone to hit Myanmar since cyclone Mala in 2006. A state of emergency was declared in five regions of Myanmar, including in the metropolis and former capital Rangoon , which was directly in the path of the cyclone. According to the methodology of the India Meteorological Department , the storm reached three-minute peak winds of 165 km / h at its peak, while the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) determined one-minute wind speeds of 215 km / h using the method of the National Hurricane Center . On May 3, the cyclone broke up in the border area between Myanmar and Thailand .
The cyclone destroyed thousands of houses, the number of victims is said to be at least 84,500, some have estimated it to be more than 100,000. Nargis has been called one of the most momentous tropical cyclones in the history of weather records.
Storm course
In the last week of April, a convection area existed in the Bay of Bengal near a shallow circulation , about 1,150 km east-southeast of Chennai , India . The system organized itself increasingly better and consolidated the circulation through a favorable high-altitude flow (so-called " outflow ") and low wind shear . On April 27, at 3:00 a.m. UTC , the India Meteorological Department (IMD) declared the system a Depression, and nine hours later BOB 01 had intensified into a Deep Depression. At that point, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center classified the system as Tropical Cyclone 01B. Due to a high pressure wedge further to the north, the system slowly migrated in a north-northwest direction, with the band structure systematically improving. On April 28 at 0:00 UTC, the IMD classified the low pressure system as Cyclonic Storm Nargis, which at that time was about 550 km east of Chennai.
On April 28, Nargis became almost stationary as the system was wedged between two high pressure ridges to the northwest and southeast. On that day, the JTWC upgraded the cyclone status to the equivalent of a Category 1 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale . At around the same time, the IMD's RSMC New Delhi upgraded Nargis to a severe cyclonic storm. The cyclone developed concentric eye features , i.e. an eyewall outside of the dominant inner eyewall, indicating an incipient eyewall renewal cycle. Warm sea water supported the further intensification. In the early morning of April 29, the JTWC estimated the wind speeds of Nargis at 160 km / h, while the IMD now assessed the system as a very severe cyclonic storm. At this stage, it was assumed that the cyclone would hit Bangladesh or southeast India. Due to subsidence and dry air, the storm was then weakened somewhat and the deep convection noticeably decreased in the center. At the same time, Nargis began to move northeast along the edge of the south-east ridge. In spite of the dwindling convection, the system kept its circulation unchanged; however, Dvorak technique carried out by satellite observation revealed that Nargis had weakened to the equivalent of a tropical storm. Late on April 29th, a new convection began to form, although an immediate strengthening of the cyclone was prevented by an increased wind shear.
On May 1st, after Cyclone Nargis had turned almost completely eastward, a rapid intensification began, which was caused by an improved discharge due to an approaching trough in height . Development continued, and Nargis formed a well-defined eye 19 km in diameter, and on the morning of May 2, as the system neared the coast of Myanmar, the JTWC estimated the one-minute peak wind speeds to be 215 km / h. At this point in time, the IMD estimated the three-minute peak winds at 165 km / h. Around 12:00 UTC, cyclone Nargis reached the coast in the Irrawaddy Division of Myanmar. Overland the weakening began, but the proximity to the Andaman Sea prevented a rapid weakening. Due to a subtropical trough approaching from the northwest, its track turned northeast and passed Yangon directly to the north, and the wind speed was still 130 km / h. At 2:00 a.m. UTC on May 3, the IMD issued its final warning about the system. Nargis weakened rapidly as it approached the mountainous area northeast of Rangoon near the Myanmar-Thai border. Therefore, the JTWC suspended its warnings about Nargis.
Effects
Western Bay of Bengal
In Sri Lanka , heavy rainfall from the cyclone caused floods and landslides, affecting ten districts. The districts of Ratnapura and Kegalle were the strongest . More than 3,000 families had to leave their homes and 4,500 families were left homeless. Three people were killed.
The India Meteorological Department advised Indian fishermen not to go out to sea with their boats while the cyclone passed, as high waves were expected on the coasts of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh . The impact of the hurricane lowered temperatures near the coast and ended a heat wave.
In Bangladesh, authorities had urged farmers to rush to end the rice harvest because Nargis was expected to hit land again, still suffering from the effects and food shortages of Cyclone Sidr and having to buy rice abroad. A direct hit by the cyclone would have destroyed the harvest.
Myanmar
Nargis caused great devastation, especially in Myanmar. Given the extent of the devastation, the Myanmar government asked for international aid. The five regions of Irrawaddy , Karen , Mon , Bago with a total of 24 million inhabitants were declared disaster areas. The Irrawaddy Delta, where entire towns were destroyed, and the former capital, Rangoon, were particularly hard hit . According to state media, at least 84,500 people were killed; Hundreds of thousands were left homeless. This made Nargis the most momentous cyclone since the Bangladesh cyclone of 1991 .
According to the definition of the National Hurricane Center , the Irrawaddy Delta and the metropolis of Yangon were hit directly . The counterclockwise winds in the northern hemisphere drove the water from the Andaman Sea directly into the mouth of the river delta. In the interplay of tides , storm surges, flowing river water and the high amounts of precipitation of sometimes well over 50 l / m² per hour, low-lying areas in the Irrawaddy river delta were up to 3.5 m under water for hours. Most of the area is only one to two meters above sea level. What the cyclone winds, which reached over 220 km / h in single gusts, did not destroy, was flooded and most of the victims drowned.
| in the division | surface | Residents |
| Irrawaddy | 5174 km² | 851,000 |
| Rangoon | 2773 km² | 569,000 |
| Mon | 992 km² | 219,000 |
| Bago | 846 km² | 93,000 |
| total | 9785 km² | 1,732,000 |
| Source: UNOSAT, May 6, 2008 | ||
This effect was reinforced by the fact that the train path from Nargis roughly followed the course of the coastline and a large part of the radius of the maximum winds was still above water after reaching the mainland north of Pagoda Point . As a result, the cyclone did not lose its intensity rapidly, but still reached category 1 strength on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale after more than 24 hours overland. At that time, the storm center was near Rangoon.
The fact that in recent years a significant part of the mangroves has disappeared from the river delta in favor of rice cultivation also had an unfavorable effect . As a result, the affected coastal region was robbed of its natural protection and the storm surge was able to penetrate up to 40 km inland unhindered. Scientists believe that a mangrove strip two hundred meters wide, tidal waves take three quarters of their energy.
Ultimately, the lack of civil protection measures also played a role.
Thailand
In the Thai province of Tak , the heavy rainfall left more than 1,000 people homeless.
Relief efforts
Obstructing international relief efforts in Myanmar
After the extent of the loss of life became known, the government's obstruction of foreign aid workers caused outrage around the world. The rulers even confiscated the few aid deliveries for the numerous victims they let into the country at all. Hundreds of logisticians and disaster experts were stuck in neighboring countries because they were not granted visas . US military aircraft carrying relief supplies were turned away. Paul Risley, a spokesman for the World Food Program (WFP), described the visa denial for foreign experts as "unprecedented" in the history of disaster relief .
On May 9, 2008, Federal Development Minister Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul called on the United Nations to increase pressure on the junta. The WFP Deputy Executive Director John Powell, however, urged to cooperate with the government. Wieczorek-Zeul said that under the “Responsibility to Protect” charter, the UN has an obligation to help people who the government does not care for. “It's about preventing the disaster after the disaster.” Six days after the devastating cyclone in Burma, up to 1.9 million people are in acute emergency.
John Powell told the AP news agency , "Our initial estimate is about $ 106 million in a program." Of that, roughly $ 53 million was for groceries, with logistics costs being another major component . By May 8, the United Nations had received commitments for donations of around $ 50 million.
With reference to the largely incomprehensible, if not “criminal” behavior of the military junta , calls were made for an invasion of Myanmar initiated by the UN and led by the US armed forces .
The UN Humanitarian Coordinator , John Holmes, reacted cautiously on May 9, 2008 to an attempt by the US Disaster Relief Agency to set up an airlift without the consent of the Myanmar government . The idea could "not be completely ruled out," said Holmes of the French newspaper " Le Monde ". But there is a risk of a confrontation with the armed forces, planes could be shot down. "That would be a very big decision and could exacerbate the blockade."
"We have now lost five or six days because of government intransigence," lamented Jan Egeland, who held Holmes' position during the 2004 Indian Ocean quake . On May 9, the Burmese Foreign Office reiterated in a statement: "Myanmar is unwilling to receive search, rescue and media teams from abroad." Sean Turnell, a Burmese economist at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia , explained the regime's stance , according to a report in the New York Times : "The foreign aid the junta refuses to provide would horribly expose them, organizationally and in terms of equipment, and it would almost be a loss of face."
"They fear that foreign soldiers could be the vanguard for overthrowing the government," Josef Silverstein, professor emeritus at Rutgers University and long-time Burma expert, was quoted in the media. From the point of view of the military regime, “aid workers could bring weapons to the people and give them ideas on how to overthrow the government”.
The destroyer Mustin , stationed in Yokosuka, Japan , since 2006, was at the same time with the three ships of the Essex amphibious battle group , alongside the Essex the Harpers Ferry and the Juneau , to Burma to support and coordinate the relief efforts. The fleet, with a total of 1,800 US Marines on board, was due to arrive off the coast of Myanmar after Whitsun.
According to government figures from June 24, 2008, 84,537 people died from the cyclone and 53,836 are missing.
Relief supplies from China
On May 9, a second shipment of relief supplies from the Chinese government arrived in Myanmar , according to Radio China International . It is part of China's additional emergency aid amounting to around 30 million RMB yuan. The Chinese government had previously provided Myanmar with one million US dollars for disaster control.
German help
The German federal government provided one million euros to support rescue work in Myanmar; Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier had announced a further increase in front of media representatives and expressed his regret about the hindrances to the aid measures. On May 12th, a twelve-person team from the Technical Relief Organization (THW) equipped with six drinking water treatment systems was able to set out for Myanmar.
See also
Web links
- Cyclone Nargis (special topic of the " New York Times ", May 5, 2008 ff.)
- Cyclone Nargis surge simulation ( Memento from May 26, 2008 in the Internet Archive ), Deltares (English)
Individual evidence
- ^ CRED disaster figures: Deaths and economic losses jump in 2008 . preventionweb.net. January 22, 2009. Retrieved October 25, 2011.
- ^ National Climatic Data Center, NOAA Tropical cyclone Nargis.
- ^ Charlie Forecast Team: April 25 Significant Tropical Weather Advisory . Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 2008. Retrieved on May 2, 2008. ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )
- ^ Charlie Forecast Team: April 26 Significant Tropical Weather Advisory . Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 2008. Accessed on May 2, 2008. ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ India Meteorological Department: Depression over southeast Bay of Bengal . 2008. Archived from the original on April 27, 2008. Retrieved on May 2, 2008.
- ^ India Meteorological Department: Deep Depression over southeast and adjoining Southwest Bay of Bengal . 2008. Archived from the original on April 27, 2008. Retrieved on May 2, 2008.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Tropical Cyclone 01B Warning NR 001 . 2008. Archived from the original on April 27, 2008. Retrieved on May 2, 2008.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Tropical Cyclone 01B Warning NR 002 . 2008. Archived from the original on April 27, 2008. Retrieved on May 2, 2008.
- ^ A b India Meteorological Department: Cyclonic storm “NARGIS” over southwest and adjoining southeast and west-central Bay of Bengal . 2008. Archived from the original on April 28, 2008. Retrieved on May 2, 2008.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Cyclone Nargis Warning NR 004 . 2008. Archived from the original on April 28, 2008. Retrieved on May 2, 2008.
- ^ India Meteorological Department: Severe Cyclonic storm “NARGIS” over southwest and adjoining southeast and west-central Bay of Bengal . 2008. Archived from the original on April 28, 2008. Retrieved on May 2, 2008.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Cyclone Nargis Warning NR 005 . 2008. Accessed on May 2, 2008. ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Cyclone Nargis Warning NR 006 . 2008. Accessed on May 2, 2008. ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Cyclone Nargis Warning NR 007 . 2008. Accessed on May 2, 2008. ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ India Meteorological Department: Very Severe Cyclonic storm “NARGIS” over west central and adjoining southwest and southeast Bay of Bengal . 2008. Archived from the original on April 29, 2008. Retrieved on May 2, 2008.
- ^ Sify News: Cyclone Nargis triggers fears in Tamil Nadu . April 28, 2008. Retrieved May 3, 2008.
- ^ The Daily Star: Cyclone Nargis poised to strike in 4-5 days . April 29, 2008. Retrieved December 7, 2013.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Cyclone Nargis Warning NR 008 . 2008. Accessed on May 2, 2008. ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Cyclone Nargis Warning NR 009 . 2008. Accessed on May 2, 2008. ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Cyclone Nargis Warning NR 010 . 2008. Accessed on May 2, 2008. ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Cyclone Nargis Warning NR 012 . 2008. Accessed on May 2, 2008. ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Cyclone Nargis Warning NR 017 . 2008. Accessed on May 2, 2008. ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Cyclone Nargis Warning NR 020 . 2008. Accessed on May 2, 2008. ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ India Meteorological Department: Tropical Storm "Nargis" Advisory No. Thirty-Six Issued At 1100 UTC of 2 May, 2008 Based on 0900 UTC Charts of 2 May, 2008 . 2008. Archived from the original on May 2, 2008. Retrieved May 2, 2008.
- ↑ India Meteorological Department: May 2, 2008 Shipping Bulletin for Met. Area VIII North of Equator . 2008. Archived from the original on May 3, 2008. Retrieved May 2, 2008.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Cyclone Nargis Warning NR 023 . 2008. Accessed on May 2, 2008. ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ India Meteorological Department: Tropical Storm "Nargis" Advisory No. Forty-One Issued At 0200 UTC of 3 May, 2008 Based on 0000 UTC Charts of 3 May, 2008 . 2008. Archived from the original on May 3, 2008. Retrieved May 2, 2008.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Cyclone Nargis Warning NR 025 . 2008. Accessed on May 3, 2008. ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Daily Mirror: Floods leave thousands homeless . April 30, 2008. Archived from the original on May 26, 2008. Retrieved on May 3, 2008.
- ↑ Lakshmi de Silva: Over 35,000 affected by floods, landslides . Upali Newspapers Limited. April 30, 2008. Retrieved May 3, 2008.
- ^ Press Trust of India: Orissa heat deaths rise to eight as cyclonic storm forms over Bay . April 28, 2008. Archived from the original on June 9, 2011. Retrieved on May 3, 2008.
- ↑ Steve Herman: Bangladesh's Farmers Told Not to Panic About Approaching Cyclone , VOA News. 2008-29-29. Archived from the original on December 5, 2008. Retrieved May 3, 2008.
- ↑ BBC News : Aid call as Burma casualties rise, May 5, 2008.
- ^ Spiegel Online : Junta corrects death toll dramatically upwards from May 8, 2008.
- ^ Glossary of the NHC: Direct hit (English, accessed May 7, 2008)
- ↑ Michael Casey: Why the Cyclone in Myanmar Was So Deadly , National Geographic. May 8, 2008. Retrieved May 9, 2008.
- ↑ Ulli Kulke: Mangroves between humans and the force of nature . The world . May 8, 2008. Retrieved May 11, 2008.
- ↑ Situation Reports: Myanmar: Tropical Cyclone Nargis - May 2008; Thailand: Floods - May 2008, Myanmar: Cyclone Nargis OCHA Situation Report No. 2 . Relief web. May 5, 2008. Retrieved May 7, 2008.
- ↑ UN deliveries to Burma: Military junta confiscates aid supplies (Spiegel Online, May 9, 2008)
- ↑ Disaster after cyclone: Burma confiscates aid supplies - UN stops flights ( Memento of March 8, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) (Netzeitung, May 9, 2008)
- ↑ Myanmar ticker: UN ask for 100 million dollars (Stern.de, May 9, 2008)
- ↑ The Myanmar junta's tragic priorities ( Memento of May 13, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) (Rocky Mountain News, May 8, 2008)
- ^ Shawn W. Crispin: The case for invading Myanmar (Asia Times Online, May 10, 2008)
- ↑ UN Pressures Myanmar to Allow Aid ("New York Times", May 9, 2008)
- ↑ Dictator Than Shwe: The Bulldog of Burma (Spiegel Online, May 9, 2008)
- ↑ International community of states helps Myanmar with rescue work (Radio China International, May 9, 2008)
