Outlook Web Desk
Tropical Cyclone Remal made its landfall on the coasts of West Bengal and Bangladesh on May 26. The cyclone has brought severe destruction to the city of Kolkata and brought a power outage across Bangladesh.
In light of Cyclone Remal, here is a look back on some of the deadliest cyclones to strike India.
Cyclone Bhola struck Bangladesh and West Bengal in 1970. With a death toll of three to five lakhs, it is considered one of India's deadliest cyclones and across the world.
The Hooghly River Cyclone, also known as the Calcutta Cyclone or Great Bengal Cyclone was the first super cyclone in the North Indian Ocean. The cyclone struck the coast of West Bengal and killed over 300,000 people.
Cyclone Coringa struck Andhra Pradesh in November 1839 and is considered to be one of the deadliest storms worldwide along with Bhola Cyclone. This storm killed over 300,000 people and destroyed around 20,000 ships.
The Calcutta cyclone of 1864 caused mass destruction across the city and actually led to the rebuilding of the capital. The death toll stood at over 60,000
This cyclone resulted in the deaths of at least 10,000 people (unofficially around 50,000). This cyclone was so powerful that it led to the creation of early warning systems to prevent natural disasters of this scale.
The 1999 Odisha Cyclone is regarded at the most intense recorded tropical cyclone in the North Indian Ocean. Along with Odisha, this cyclone also affected areas of Bangladesh, Thailand and Myanmar. The death toll of this cyclone stands at 9,887.
In October 1942, a severe cyclonic storm hit the coasts of West Bengal and Odisha and caused around 61,000 fatalities. This cyclone also recorded the highest wind speeds during a cyclone ever at 225kmph.