Cyclone Sidr

From the department of human-tragedy- about-to-unfold?:

In short, it looks like this storm is going to strike India or Bangladesh, and that it may be very powerful when it does so. November is a peak month for Bay of Bengal cyclone activity, and there's this added concern: The Bay of Bengal is, compared with the open Pacific Ocean, a relatively small area. Often cyclones form there but cannot become very intense before hitting land.

However, Sidr developed in the open ocean near the Andaman Islands, and has all the time it needs to reach peak intensity without obstruction. This is a scary, scary hurricane. Let's hope it weakens again, and does not hit a populous area.

Bangladesh is the worst nation in the world to be hit by tropical depressions. The nation is essentially a flat, flood plain and most of its land is less than 10 metres about sea level. Bangladesh has lost hundreds of thousands of people in previous cyclones. Let's pray that the storm avoids them.