Cyclone Bulbul: 10 killed, 2.73 lakh families affected in Bengal

Cyclone 'Bulbul', which barrelled through the coastal districts of West Bengal before hurtling towards Bangladesh, claimed at least 10 lives and affected at least 2.73 lakh families in different parts of the state, official reports said on Sunday.

The severe cyclonic storm, which brought in its wake heavy rain coupled with gale wind till early Sunday, uprooted hundreds of trees and snapped cables in the city and in the coastal districts of North and South 24 Parganas and East Midnapore, bring life to a near-halt.

State Disaster Management minister Javed Khan said that at least 2,473 houses were destroyed and another 26,000 were partially damaged in the cyclone in the coastal districts along the Bay of Bengal, with the fishing towns of Bakkhali and Namkhana being among the worst-affected areas. READ MORE HERE