A coastal region of Bangladesh has been hit by a tropical cyclone-turned-storm, killing 12 people, decimating homes and forcing scores of citizens to evacuate.
Mahasen struck Patuakhali district on Thursday-more than 956,672 people moved from their homes in coastal areas to any of the 3,200 cyclone shelters located more inland, reported the BBC.
The storm, called Mahasen, was initially projected to be a cyclone. But before it hit the land, the storm waned into heavy rain and winds up to 60 mph, which is a speed just shy of a hurricane.
All ports in the major transportation city of Chittagong were canceled in the wake of the storm. Flights to and from the city's airport were also cut.
Before the storm hit, officials were bearing up for what they thought would be one of the most dangerous and devastating natural disasters for the area this year.
The United Nations cautioned residents in Bangladesh, Burma and northeast India they might be struck hardest. A few Indian states also released storm alerts and told citizens to take necessary steps to protect themselves from the harsh weather conditions.
But the Mahasen storm has largely dissipated since it first hit, giving relief to officials that first assumed the absolute worst.
"The situation is turning normal and the people have started returning home after some 200,000 people took overnight refuge at cyclone shelters at Barisal Division," divisional commissioner of Barisal Mohammad Nurul Amin told Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, a news service in the area. "The damage was not that much what we feared, and people who took shelters have already started moving to their houses, as the weather is becoming almost normal."
Still, damage done by the storm was brutal and cruel: trees were uprooted, coastal areas flooded, 12 citizens died and citizens lost homes and belongings.
