Daultipur-Salturia Tornado
Encyclopedia
The Daulatpur-Saturia, Bangladesh Tornado was an extremely destructive tornado
that occurred in the Manikganj District
, Bangladesh
on April 26, 1989. It was the costliest and deadliest tornado in Bangladesh's history. There is great uncertainty about the death toll, but estimates indicate that it killed around 1,300 people, which would make it the deadliest tornado in history. The tornado affected the cities of Daulatpur
and Saturia
the most, moving east through Daulatpur and eventually northeast and into Saturia. Previously, the area that the tornado hit had been in a state of drought for six months, possibly generating tornadic conditions.
The tornado was estimated to be approximately one mile wide, and had a path that was about 50 miles long, through the poor
areas and slum
s of Bangladesh. Approximately 80,000 people were left homeless by the storm, and 12,000 people were injured by the storm. Saturia
and Manikganj were both fully destroyed by the tornado. The Fujita Scale
rating of this storm is unknown due to poor housing construction and lack of data. In Bangladesh, housing construction in the poor areas is very poor, so sometimes a strong gust of wind may knock over a home and kill the residents inside. This is also why the vast majority of homes hit by the tornado were leveled.
and Canada
. Bangladesh has received other deadly tornadoes such as this one (see List of Asian tornadoes and tornado outbreaks), but this particular storm was the worst one in the country's history.
Tornado
A tornado is a violent, dangerous, rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. They are often referred to as a twister or a cyclone, although the word cyclone is used in meteorology in a wider...
that occurred in the Manikganj District
Manikganj District
The district of Manikganj consists 3575 mosques, 160 temples, 10 churches, five Buddhist temples and a pagoda.-Literacy and education:Literacy and educational institutions Average literacy 26.9%; male 33.7%, female 20.1%...
, Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
on April 26, 1989. It was the costliest and deadliest tornado in Bangladesh's history. There is great uncertainty about the death toll, but estimates indicate that it killed around 1,300 people, which would make it the deadliest tornado in history. The tornado affected the cities of Daulatpur
Daulatpur
Daulatpur may refer to:*Daulatpur, Manikganj, a town in Manikganj District, Bangladesh, well known for being the site of the world's deadliest tornado*Daulatpur, Punjab, a census town in Punjab, India...
and Saturia
Saturia
Saturia is an upazila in Manikganj District in the Dhaka Division of central Bangladesh....
the most, moving east through Daulatpur and eventually northeast and into Saturia. Previously, the area that the tornado hit had been in a state of drought for six months, possibly generating tornadic conditions.
Damage and effects
Damage was extensive over the area, as countless trees were uprooted and every home within a six square kilometer area of the tornado's path was completely destroyed. After the storm hit, an article in the Bangladesh Observer stated that "The devastation was so complete, that barring some skeletons of trees, there were no signs of standing infrastructures".The tornado was estimated to be approximately one mile wide, and had a path that was about 50 miles long, through the poor
Poverty
Poverty is the lack of a certain amount of material possessions or money. Absolute poverty or destitution is inability to afford basic human needs, which commonly includes clean and fresh water, nutrition, health care, education, clothing and shelter. About 1.7 billion people are estimated to live...
areas and slum
Slum
A slum, as defined by United Nations agency UN-HABITAT, is a run-down area of a city characterized by substandard housing and squalor and lacking in tenure security. According to the United Nations, the percentage of urban dwellers living in slums decreased from 47 percent to 37 percent in the...
s of Bangladesh. Approximately 80,000 people were left homeless by the storm, and 12,000 people were injured by the storm. Saturia
Saturia
Saturia is an upazila in Manikganj District in the Dhaka Division of central Bangladesh....
and Manikganj were both fully destroyed by the tornado. The Fujita Scale
Fujita scale
The Fujita scale , or Fujita-Pearson scale, is a scale for rating tornado intensity, based primarily on the damage tornadoes inflict on human-built structures and vegetation...
rating of this storm is unknown due to poor housing construction and lack of data. In Bangladesh, housing construction in the poor areas is very poor, so sometimes a strong gust of wind may knock over a home and kill the residents inside. This is also why the vast majority of homes hit by the tornado were leveled.
Frequency
Tornadoes are fairly common in Bangladesh as it is one of the most frequently hit countries in the world, behind the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Bangladesh has received other deadly tornadoes such as this one (see List of Asian tornadoes and tornado outbreaks), but this particular storm was the worst one in the country's history.