Kolkata bears brunt of cyclone that hit India and Bangladesh

WIDE tracts of coastal India and Bangladesh have been flooded and millions are without power after Cyclone Amphan swept through, killing more than 80 people and cutting a path of destruction.

Amphan is the most powerful storm to hit the region in more than a decade. Many parts of the Indian metropolis of Kolkata, home to more than 14 million people, were under water, and its airport was closed briefly by flooding. Roads were littered with uprooted trees and lamp posts, electricity and communication lines were down and centuries-old buildings were damaged. Officials in both countries said the full extent of the damage caused was not known because communications to many places were cut. Hundreds of thousands of people were evacuated ahead of the storm, a process complicated by the coronavirus pandemic.

Amphan came ashore on Wednesday with heavy rain, a battering storm surge and sustained winds of 170km/h and gusts up to 190km/h.