Bhola sits on or near Bangladesh’s low-lying coast along the Bay of Bengal, one of the most cyclone-exposed coastlines in the world, with the cyclone season peaking before and after the summer monsoon in April-May and October-November.
On Bangladesh’s largest island in the Meghna estuary, the city gave its name to the catastrophic 1970 Bhola cyclone, one of the deadliest storms in recorded history. Cyclone Bhola in 1970, one of the deadliest tropical cyclones ever recorded, and more recent storms like Cyclone Sidr in 2007 and Cyclone Amphan in 2020 have repeatedly shown how a direct hit combined with storm surge can devastate this flat, densely populated coast, making radar tracking of an approaching cyclone’s exact path essential. Learn more: Hurricane Season Radar Guide · Open the full Rain Map