The Department of Meteorology and Hydrology (DMH) announced that the extremely severe cyclone Mocha hit Sittwe in Rakhine State at a wind speed of over 100 miles per hour. Such a very powerful storm came 15 years after the deadly cyclone Nargis hit Myanmar in 2008.

 Cyclone Mocha moved towards land after passing through near Sittwe on May 14. But, the true extent of the damage or destruction is still unknown. 

The storm getting stronger when approaching Rakhine coast

According to weather news, the wind was blown at a speed of up to 160 mph in the sea due to the category 5 cyclonic storm.  

U Win Naing, an observer of weather conditions, quoted weather forecasts as saying “The storm even more intensified when it reached land, and has reached Category 5 Super Cyclone.”

According a statement released by Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System GDACS this morning, cyclone Mocha has developed into Category 5 Super Cyclone at a wind speed of 160 mph.

Cyclone Mocha coded brown stage started passing through near the town of Sittwe at a wind speed of over 130 mph on May 14 afternoon, DMH reported.

According to the observations at 9.30 am, the extremely severe cyclonic storm “Mocha” over Northeast Bay and adjoining East Central Bay of Bengal has moved northeastwards and centered at about 100 nautical miles Southwest of Sittwe, 115 nautical miles West-Southwest of Kyaukpyu, and 240 nautical miles Northwest of Hainggyigyun (Myanmar).

The centre pressure of cyclone Mocha was 938 hPa and maximum wind speed near the center is 130-137 miles per hour, the DMH reported.

During next 36 hours forecast, the cyclone was likely continue to move North-Northeastwards and the outermost banding features of cyclonic storm is crossing Rakhine Coast, the centre of cyclonic storm will forecast to cross between Cox’s Bazar (Bangladesh) and Kyaukphyu (Myanmar) near Sittwe (Myanmar) around afternoon of today as an Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm “Mocha”. Thereafter it is likely continue to move North-Northeastwards towards Chin State and Magway, Sagaing Regions and Kachin State as a Very Severe Cyclonic Storm “Mocha”, the department said.

The situation in Sittwe on May 14

There were only low winds and rains in Sittwe, the capital of Rakhine State, on the morning of May 14. In the afternoon, the cyclone started to hit Sittwe.

“There are evacuations. There are over 1,000 evacuees at schools and monasteries. For their meals, we collect a pack of food from each house. We are in need of food,” said an official from Phyusin Mitta aid organization.

A member of a local aid organization said there were only rains but no winds in the town of Maungdaw.

There were storm surges in low-lying areas of Sittwe when the storm came in the afternoon. A telecom tower collapsed and the roofs of some houses were blown off. As it was an MPT tower, MPT phone connections were cut off. 

News emerged on social media that some people were trapped in the homes in some wards of Sittwe at about 3pm.

Some local media outlets reported that currently, the low-lying communities in Sittwe are in flood after the storm passed through near the town.

Those trapped in their homes are reportedly in need of emergency aid.

Without phone connections, the town could not be contacted until 5pm on May 14.

U Hla Tun, director of DMH, said the centre of the storm passed through Yathedaung to the north of Sittwe at a wind speed of at least 100 mph after 2 pm.

“First we predicted the wind speed was between 120 and 130 mph. By nature, when a storm makes landfall, it will get less strong. Our estimation is that the wind speed will be above 100 mph,” U Hla Tun said.

In the evening he added that it was time for the whole storm to pass because the diameter of the cyclone Mocha was about 300 miles.  

Cyclone Mocha heading towards Chin, Sagaing and Magway

The extremely severe cyclone Mocha continued heading towards Chin State, Sagaing and Magway via Rakhine State. 

According to DMH, maximum wind speed in Chin State and Sagaing, Magway, Mandalay and Ayeyawady regions would be between 70 and 90 mph. 

It had been raining in Shwebo District of Sagaing Region for 48 hours. A 300-strong team comprising fire brigade and aid organization members were getting ready for rescue and relief work, according to sources from Myanmar aid organization (Shwebo).

There were rains but no winds in Shwebo until 11.30pm on May 14, said an official from the organization.  

“It has been raining for 48. But there are no floods or winds. In cooperation with the firefighters, we are clearing the trees which fell on some buildings,” he said.

“There are no evacuations yet. But we are getting ready for them if necessary. We have monasteries and other religious buildings as well as schools,” he continued.

According to the storm route map released by Myanmar Information Management Unit (MIMU), the wind would be blown at 120 kilometres per hour in some townships of Rakhine State, Chin State and Sagaing Region. The towns through which the storm would pass included Yathedaung, Myaypon, Minbya, Ponnakyun, Pauktaw, MraukU, Saw, Kanpetlet, Yinmabin, Kani, Kyaukhtu and Gangaw. The towns where the wind would be blown at a speed of 90 kmh included Marnaung, Laytaung, An and Kyaukphyu in Rakhine State and Seikphyukyun, Pwintphyu, Salin and Myitche in Magway Region.

Could cyclone Mocha cause more damage than cyclone Nargis?

When Myanmar was hit by the severest cyclone Nargis, maximum wind speed was 130 mph. The powerful cyclone formed within a week after the formation of a low pressure area

The low pressure area formed on April 27, 2008 and developed into cyclone Nargis on May 1. The storm made landfall in Myanmar. The storm hit up to 40 kilometers of stretches in the Ayeyawady delta region. Around 100,000 people were killed and destruction to properties cost 62,988,000,000 kyats (around US$10 billion). Of the storms that formed in the North Indian Ocean, cyclone Nargis caused the largest destruction. 

Cyclone Nargis was first to enter Bangladesh or southeastern India but it changed direction and hit the delta region of Myanmar. Other countries such as India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka were also affected. But, Myanmar suffered most. 

The current cyclone Mocha would head for Sittwe and enter land affecting Magway and Sagaing regions.

Currently, those regions are lacking regional stability and seeing a lot of people displaced by fighting.

In Rakhine State also, fighting started over three years ago. There were engagements until the end of 2022. Although it sees regional stability now, the local people who had suffered war could face great difficulties because of the storm. 

However, loss and damage could not have been known at the time of the storm.

Ayeyawady Region could not revive its salt making and agricultural activities well for several years after cyclone Nargis.

Despite being a storm-prone region, Rakhine State faced the wind that was blown at a speed of over 100 mph.

The cyclone Giri that Rakhine State experienced in 2010 was supposed to be the strongest in the past. But, its maximum wind speed was just over 80 mph. 

At that time, seven townships of the state were badly damaged.  Seven townships in Magway Region and four townships in Sagaing were also affected with loss and damage. Across those regions, a total of 71 villages were affected, at least 260,000 people affected and about 10,000 others badly affected. 

Thanks to prior warnings, news media and public awareness, most people were evacuated and only 45 died in the storm.

The maximum wind speed of cyclone Mocha was as high as that of cyclone Nargis, and its centre pressure was enormous, weather forecasters have already said. Therefore, search and rescue measures must go on continuously.