Cyclone warning for Myanmar's west coast

Cyclone warning for Myanmar's west coast
Fri Apr 17, 6:18 am ET

YANGON (AFP) – Myanmar weather officials issued a cyclone warning Friday, urging residents in the western coastal region to stay away from the sea for two days until the storm passed.

The military-run government's meteorological department issued the advice on its website following updates from the United Nations' weather monitoring centre.

"All vessels... in Myanmar waters along the Rakhine coast are advised to take precautionary measures by navigating away from the area exposed to the threat from rough seas and strong winds until 18 April 2009," it said.

The UN World Meteorological Organisation said that Cyclone Bijli was currently located over the Bay of Bengal "and is likely to intensify further."

"The current forecast indicates that the tropical depression will seriously affect the coasts of India, Bangladesh and northern Myanmar," it warned.

A Myanmar radio report said tidal surges six to eight feet (about two metres) high were expected and put the threat from the cyclone at "orange," which is medium-level.

"When the cyclone crosses, the surface wind speed could reach 60 to 75 miles per hour and the sea will be rough," the radio announcer said.

Myanmar was hit by a severe cyclone one year ago that left an estimated 138,000 people dead or missing and affected some 2.4 million people, mostly in the southwest delta region.

But despite a huge international relief push, the secretive ruling junta stalled on issuing visas to foreign aid workers and blocked some humanitarian supplies from entering the country, drawing worldwide condemnation.