Ferry services in southern Arakan suspended due to weather conditions

By Admin 08 Jun 2023

DMG Newsroom
8 June 2023, Sittwe

Ferry boat services to destinations in southern Arakan State will be suspended for a week due to a low pressure cell over the Bay of Bengal, according to a manager of the Shwe Pyi Tan ferry boat service.

Operations on the Sittwe-Kyaukphyu-Ramreee-Kyauknimaw-Taungup route and Taungup-Manaung route will be suspended as of June 9.

“We will suspend operations because of the low pressure. Though it is not a storm, we will suspend it due to the weather forecast of the Department of Meteorology and Hydrology,” said manager U San Maw Thein of the Shwe Pyi Tan ferry boat service.

Heavy rain accompanied by strong winds, flash flooding and landslides are possible, said the Department of Meteorology and Hydrology.

Occasional squalls with rough seas are forecast off and along the Myanmar coastline. Surface wind speeds may reach 40 mph and wave heights could top out at 9-12 feet off and along the Myanmar coast, said the Department of Meteorology and Hydrology.

Ferry services were suspended in the days leading up to the arrival of Cyclone Mocha on May 14, when it made landfall near Sittwe with deadly and destructive force.