Dhaka (PTI): Super cyclone Mocha started hitting the coastlines of Bangladesh and Myanmar on Sunday after intensifying into the equivalent of a category-five storm.

The powerful cyclone is bringing heavy rain and winds of up to 195 kph, which could see dangerous flooding in areas around the Bay of Bengal.

Storm surges of up to four metres could swamp villages in low-lying areas. There are fears it may hit the world's largest refugee camp, Cox's Bazar, where over one million displaced Muslim Rohingya refugees live in makeshift camps.

According to the latest bulletin by the Met Office, the cyclone is 250 kilometres south of Cox's Bazar and is now crossing the coast.

The forecast was it will make landfall with heavy rains and winds on Sunday afternoon. The low-lying areas of Cox's Bazar and Chattogram are likely to be inundated by wind-driven tidal surges eight to 12 feet above normal.

Tidal surges of five to seven feet above normal are also likely to deluge low-lying parts of Feni, Noakhali, Laxmpur, Chandpur, and Bhola, bdnews24.com reported.

Meteorologists previously warned Mocha could be the most powerful storm seen in Bangladesh in nearly two decades.

The category 4 cyclone has intensified into the equivalent of a category-five storm.

Around 500,000 people have been evacuated to safer areas.

As part of its preparation, Bangladesh shut nearby airports, ordered fisherfolks to suspend their work and set up 1,500 shelters as people from vulnerable areas were moved to safer spots.

Officials said the government, with the support of UN agencies and aid workers, has kept tonnes of dry food and dozens of ambulances ready with mobile medical teams in sprawling camps of the Rohingyas who fled to Bangladesh from Myanmar.

Residents and officials fear the Mocha-triggered tidal surges could cause massive deluges and landslides, endangering the lives of those residing in hillside camps, where mudslides hit regularly.

The World Meteorological Organisation, a United Nations agency, has warned the super cyclone will cause heavy rain, flooding, and landslides around the coasts of Bangladesh and Myanmar.

However, Mohammad Azizur Rahman, director of Bangladesh Meteorological Department, said the risk for Bangladesh has reduced.

He said areas in Myanmar and its southern region are expected to be at greater risk.

"The risk has reduced a lot in our Bangladesh," he was quoted as saying by the Daily Star newspaper.

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Lucknow/Jhansi (UP), Nov 17: Nurse Megha James was on duty when the fire broke out at the Jhansi hospital and she threw herself headlong into the rescue efforts, playing a hero's role by saving several babies.

Even when her salwar got burned, she refused to give up and was able to evacuate 14-15 babies with others' help.

"I had gone to take a syringe to give an injection to a child. When I came back, I saw that the (oxygen) concentrator had caught fire. I called the ward boy, who came with the fire extinguisher and tried to put it out. But by then, the fire had spread," James said.

Ten babies perished in a fire that broke out at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of the Maharani Laxmi Bai Medical College in Jhansi Friday night.

Faced with an enormous blaze, James's mind worked with a frenetic speed, to the extent she cared little about burning herself.

"My chappal caught fire and I burned my foot. Then my salwar caught fire. I removed my salwar and discarded it. At that time, my mind was virtually not working," she told PTI Videos.

James just wore another salwar and went back to the rescue operation.

"There was a lot of smoke, and once the lights went out, we could not see anything. The entire staff brought out at least 14-15 children. There were 11 beds in the ward with 23-24 babies," she said.

Had the lights not gone out they could have saved more children, James said. "It all happened very suddenly. None of us had expected it."

Assistant Nursing Superintendent Nalini Sood praised James's valour and recounted bits from how the rescue operation was carried out.

"The hospital staff broke the glasses of the NICU ward to evacuate the babies. It was then Nurse Megha's salwar caught fire. Instead of caring for her safety, she stayed there to rescue the babies and handed them over to people outside," she said.

Sood said James is currently undergoing treatment at the same medical college. She said she did not know the extent of her burns.

"The rescued babies were shifted to a ward very close to the NICU ward… When I recall the scene, I feel like crying," she said.

Dr Anshul Jain, the head of the anaesthesiology department at the medical college, explained the standard rescue operation and claimed the hospital followed the protocol to the T.

"In the triage process during an ICU evacuation, the policy is to evacuate less-affected patients first. The rationale behind this approach is that patients requiring minimal support can be relocated quickly, enabling a larger number of evacuations to be completed in a shorter time.

"In contrast, patients on ventilators or requiring high oxygen support demand more time and resources for evacuation," he said.

"This principle was successfully implemented in Jhansi, playing a significant role in saving many lives," Jain said.

A newborn rescued from the fire died due to illness on Sunday, Jhansi District Magistrate Avinash Kumar said.