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The 1970 Bhola cyclone was a devastating tropical cyclone that struck East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and India's West Bengal on 12 November 1970. It remains the deadliest tropical cyclone ever recorded and one of the deadliest natural disasters in modern times.〔"(Disaster; East Pakistan: Cyclone May Be The Worst Catastrophe of Century )" (pay article), ''The New York Times'', November 22, 1970, p. 169.〕 Up to 500,000 people lost their lives in the storm, primarily as a result of the storm surge that flooded much of the low-lying islands of the Ganges Delta.〔 This cyclone was the sixth cyclonic storm of the 1970 North Indian Ocean cyclone season, and also the season's strongest, reaching a strength equivalent to a strong Category 3 hurricane. The cyclone formed over the central Bay of Bengal on November 8 and traveled north, intensifying as it did so. It reached its peak with winds of 185 km/h (115 mph) on November 11, and made landfall on the coast of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) the following afternoon. The storm surge devastated many of the offshore islands, wiping out villages and destroying crops throughout the region. In the most severely affected upazila, Tazumuddin, over 45% of the population of 167,000 was killed by the storm. The Pakistani government led by junta leader General Yahya Khan was severely criticized for its delayed handling of the relief operations following the storm, both by local political leaders in East Pakistan and in the international media. During the election that took place a month later, the opposition Awami League gained a landslide victory in the province, and continuing unrest between East Pakistan and the central government triggered the Bangladesh Liberation War, which led to widespread atrocities and eventually concluded with the creation of the country of Bangladesh. This storm as well as the war would also inspire ex-Beatle George Harrison and Bengali musician Ravi Shankar to organize The Concert for Bangladesh, the prototype benefit concert, to raise money for aid, in 1971. == Meteorological history == The remnants of Tropical Storm Nora from the Pacific, which had lasted for two days in the South China Sea, moved west over the Malay Peninsula on November 5. The remnants of this system contributed to the development of a new depression in the central Bay of Bengal on the morning of November 8. The depression intensified as it moved slowly northward, and the India Meteorological Department upgraded it to a cyclonic storm the next day. No country in the region had ever named tropical cyclones during this time, so no new identity was given.〔 The storm became nearly stationary that evening near 14.5° N, 87° E, but began to accelerate to the north on November 10. The hurricane intensified into a severe cyclonic storm on 11 November and began to turn towards the northeast as it approached the head of the bay. A clear eye formed in the storm, and it reached its peak later that day with sustained winds of 185 km/h (115 mph) and a central pressure of 966 hPa, equivalent to that of a Category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. The cyclone made landfall on the East Pakistan coastline during the evening of 12 November, around the same time as the local high tide. Once over land, the system began to weaken but was still considered a cyclonic storm on 13 November when it was about south-southeast of Agartala. The storm then rapidly weakened into a remnant area of low pressure over southern Assam that evening.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「1970 Bhola cyclone」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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