Before-and-after images show devastation of deadly Cyclone Mocha

Before-and-after images have revealed the devastation caused by deadly Cyclone Mocha.

The powerful cyclone came ashore in Myanmar’s Rakhine state near Sittwe, with wind speeds of up to 130mph, according to the country’s meteorological department.

Figures for the number of deaths in Myanmar – a country run by military leadership following a 2021 coup – have yet to be independently verified.

State media, which is tightly controlled by the military junta, have reported around two dozen deaths and hundreds of others injured due to Mocha.

However, residents of the western region of Rakhine state, where there is a large population of Rohingya Muslims, said at least 100 people had died and many more were missing and feared dead.

Scroll across the before-and-after pictures to see the extent of the damage in the city of Sittwe, where homes have been destroyed, roofs have collapsed and public buildings left damaged.

As much as 90% of the city has reportedly been destroyed, while the area has been declared a natural disaster zone.

Others images show what is left of a coastal road and bridge covered in seawater and dirt thrown up from the storm.

Pictures from inside the town show paths and roads blocked off in the aftermath of the cyclone.

Before-and-after images also show the significant damage to Sittwe University – a technical university focused on science and engineering.

The pictures show a number of buildings on the campus with collapsed roofs and blown-out windows.

In other images, an old lighthouse, which remains as a historical landmark, appears unscathed, while a number of buildings around it appear damaged by the cyclone.

The storm is one of the worst since Cyclone Nargis swept across parts of southern Myanmar – one of Asia’s least developed nations – killing nearly 140,000 people in 2008.

Thousands of people living along the western coast of Rakhine state were evacuated or moved into shelters before the cyclone came ashore.

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But at camps for displaced Rohingya, the presence of aid agencies is spotty and help from the country’s military government is negligible.

At the world’s largest refugee camp in neighbour Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar district, Rohingya from Myanmar were moved to safer areas until Cyclone Mocha passed – potentially saving thousands of lives.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said in total more than 700,000 people were moved to cyclone shelters or makeshift facilities including schools and mosques.

On Monday, rescuers evacuated about 1,000 people trapped by seawater 3.6 meters (12 feet) deep along western Myanmar’s coast.

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