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   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   May 16, 2023 - Mocha Makes Landfall in Myanmar'   
      
      Mocha makes landfall   
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      As Cyclone Mocha approached Myanmar on May 14, 2023, the storm became   
      one of the strongest cyclones ever seen in the North Indian Ocean,   
      packing catastrophic maximum sustained winds of 175 miles (280   
      kilometers) per hour. These wind speeds place it as a Category 5 storm   
      on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, and tied it with Cyclone   
      Fani on May 2019 as the strongest tropical cyclone ever seen in that   
      region, according to Yale Climate Connection.   
      
      Fortunately, the storm weakened slightly during the final hours of its   
      approach to landfall, but Tropical Storm Mocha retained extremely high   
      winds when it crossed onto land early on May 14, striking about 10   
      miles northwest of the region capital of Sittwe, in Rahkine State,   
      Myanmar. Just before landfall, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC)   
      advised that maximum sustained winds were 155 mph (249.5 km/h), or a   
      Category 4 storm. Yale Climate Connection notes that this also makes   
      Mocha tied as the “second-strongest cyclone at landfall in the in the   
      North Indian Ocean in the JTWC database. The only stronger landfalling   
      storm in their records—and the only Cat 5 landfall—was the 1999 Odisha   
      Cyclone of October 1999, whose catastrophic hit on India killed 9,843   
      people”.   
      
      The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s   
      Aqua satellite captured a true-color image of the cyclone at 07:15   
      Universal Time (1:45 p.m. local time) on May 14, 2023, as the storm   
      neared landfall. The small cloud-filled eye sits just northwest of   
      Sittwe while the convective bands bring strong winds and rain to   
      Bangladesh (northwest) as well as far south and inland in Myanmar.   
      
      Early reports suggest the storm caused widespread damage in Sittwe, the   
      state capital of Rakhine, with local news sources reporting flooded   
      streets, downed trees and power lines, and roofs torn from homes. The   
      evacuation of hundreds of thousands of people from vulnerable areas in   
      both Bangladesh and Myanmar in advance of the storm may have helped   
      limit casualties, according to some news reports. The worst of the   
      storm surge also missed low-lying refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar that   
      many observers feared were vulnerable.   
      
      According to an update from the United Nations Office for the   
      Coordination of Human Affairs (OCHA) on May 14, “Early reports suggest   
      the damage is extensive and needs among already vulnerable communities,   
      particularly displaced people, will be high,”. On May 15, ReliefWeb   
      reported that, in Myanmar there have been five fatalities and more than   
      700 injuries reported. They also note severe damage to the Royhinga   
      Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps as well as to houses in   
      western Rakhine. The ReliefWeb update also notes that in Bangladesh, “a   
      total of 414,170 people and 23,027 livestock were evacuated in 7,040   
      shelters in 14 coastal districts. Significant damage to thousands of   
      refugee shelters and key facilities in camps and host communities in   
      Cox’s Bazar district are reported but no loss of lives”.   
      
      Image Facts   
      Satellite:  Aqua   
      Date Acquired: 5/15/2023   
      Resolutions:  1km (493.1 KB),  500m (1.5 MB),   
      Bands Used: 1,4,3   
      Image Credit: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC   
      
      
      
   https://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/individual.php?db_date=2023-05-16   
       
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