Where is the storm? Right now, Cyclone Amphan is in the Bay of Bengal, which is located in the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia all border the Bay of Bengal. The region often gets strong storms during monsoon season, which usually takes place between June and September.

Where and when will it make landfall? Amphan is forecast to hit the coast in the Ganges River Delta, the world’s largest river delta. It is a densely populated, low-lying area with notoriously unreliable infrastructure, so meteorologists and governments in the region are worried the cyclone could bring incredibly destructive storm surges once it hits.

How strong is the storm? It was the most powerful storm ever to form in the Bay of Bengal, but has weakened in the past several hours as it edges closer to landfall. Before it weakened, Amphan became just the second super cyclone to hit the Bay of Bengal since records began. During the last one, which hit in 1999, nearly 10,000 people were killed.

How many people are in its path? Likely tens of millions. Hundreds of millions of people live in the delta, but not all are in the storm’s direct path. The largest city at risk appears to be Kolkata, capital of India’s West Bengal state, which is home to 14 million people. The Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka is located further inland, and likely will not be hit as hard as the coastal regions.

Are people being evacuated? More than 2 million people have already been relocated in Bangladesh and about 400,000 have been evacuated in India, local officials said.

What about the pandemic? Covid-19 is adding yet another layer of difficulty for disaster response authorities. One of the biggest worries is staying vigilant about social distancing, especially when considering just how densely packed evacuation centers can get. According to Bangladesh Disaster Management Ministry senior information official Selim Hossain, there is capacity for 9.1 million people to be safety housed in cyclone shelters while practicing social distancing