Nargis near peak intensity approaching Myanmar on May 2
Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm Nargis (
Burmese:
နာဂစ်;
Urdu:
نرگس,
[ˈnərɡɪs]) was an extremely destructive and deadly
tropical cyclone that caused the worst
natural disaster in the
recorded history of
Myanmar during early May 2008. The cyclone made
landfall in Myanmar on Friday, 2 May 2008, sending a
storm surge 40 kilometres up the densely populated
Irrawaddy delta, causing catastrophic destruction and at least 138,373 fatalities. The
Labutta Township alone was reported to have 80,000 dead, with about 10,000 more deaths in
Bogale. There were around 55,000 people missing and many other deaths were found in other towns and areas, although the Myanmar
government's official death toll may have been under-reported, and there have been allegations that government officials stopped updating the death toll after 138,000 to minimise political fallout. The feared 'second wave' of fatalities from disease and lack of relief efforts never materialised. Damage was at $12 billion, making Nargis the costliest tropical cyclone on record in the
North Indian Ocean at the time, before that record was broken by
Cyclone Amphan in
2020.
The first named storm of the
2008 North Indian Ocean cyclone season, Nargis developed on 27 April in the central area of
Bay of Bengal. Initially, the storm tracked slowly northwestward, and encountering favourable conditions, it quickly strengthened. Dry air weakened the cyclone on 29 April, though after beginning a steady eastward motion, Nargis
rapidly intensified to attain peak winds of at least 165 km/h (105 mph) on 2 May, according to
IMD observations; the
JTWC assessed peak winds of 215 km/h (135 mph), making it a weak Category 4 cyclone on the
SSHWS. The cyclone moved ashore in the
Ayeyarwady Division of Myanmar at peak intensity and, after passing near the major city of
Yangon (Rangoon), the storm gradually weakened until dissipating near the border of Myanmar and
Thailand. (
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