Cyclone Sidr, a Fierce Category 4 Storm, Heads for Bangladesh

Cyclone Sidr was labeled the 2nd most powerful storm ever to hit Bangladesh. This image is from Nov. 14, before landfall.

Photo: U.S. Navy

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Cyclone Sidr, a powerful Category 4 storm with destructive potential, gained even more strength in the past 12 hours, and shows no signs of losing strength for at least 24 hours. It is forecast to lose strength before landfall, but would still hit land as a strong Category 1 storm.

The storm, now packing 138 mph sustained winds, is headed for landfall on the western edge of Bangladesh, at the border with India, near to where Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), the capital of its province, sits.

Past strong storms to hit Bangladesh have caused massive casualties, numbering in the hundreds of thousands — giving this hurricane perhaps the most deadly potential of any so far this year.

Bangladesh, a low-lying nation rich with river deltas, is also considered a ground-zero for global warming impacts. Sea-level rise is the major concern, but destructive storms — should they become more frequent or intense — would also be cause for worry. Millions of people might be displaced in the coming decades, if projections hold, causing refugee crises in neighboring states, and — according to one recent analysis — the potential for a rise in extremist Islamic tendencies in the region.

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