Cyclone Mahasen’s main victims are likely to be people who’ ve already been forced out of their homes. For 70,000 displaced refugees in western Burma the choice was wait until Cyclone Mahasen swallows their low-lying camps on Wednesday or run back to higher ground were they were violently forced from. Human Rights Watch has been issuing warnings for months about dangers posed by the oncoming rainy season. Their Asia director said, ‘If the government fails to evacuate those at risk, any disaster that results will not be natural, but man-made.’ Cyclone Mahasen travelled towards Burma and Bangladesh over the Bay of Bengal with wind speeds of at least 45 knots (85 kilometers per hour) Speeds are expected to reach 70 knots as it strikes land. In Bangladesh hundreds of thousands of people were being evacuated from coastal areas. On Wednesday authorities raised the danger level to seven out of 10 for low-lying land where the cyclone is estimated to reach by Thursday. See: http://qz.com/84870/cyclone-mahasens-main-victims-are-likely-to-be-people-whove-already-been-forced-out-of-their-homes/

Pray: for the tens of thousands of refugees living in Burmese camps who are at risk and for the thousands being evacuated in from Bangladesh coastal villages. For the agencies who will minister to the survivors (Ps.123)

More: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-22537615