a trail of devastation in the vast mangrove swamp, a top forestry official said Saturday. The world's largest mangrove forest bore the brunt of the cyclone that smashed into Bangladesh on Nov. 15, killing more than 3,200 people and wiping out thousands of villages.
"The cyclone has left huge devastation in the Sunderbans unseen for decades. Some 1,500 square kilometers (600 square miles) of the forest was damaged," chief government forest conservation official A.K.M. Shamsuddin said.
"At least seven percent of the (Bangladeshi portion of the) forest was severely damaged... while another 17 to 18 percent was partially damaged," he told AFP, adding initial satellite images showed the extent of the destruction.
The 10,000 square kilometer forest straddles the borders of Bangladesh and India's West Bengal state and lies on the Ganges-Brahmaputra delta.
The Bangladesh portion comprises 60 percent of the total area. The Indian side was untouched by the cyclone.
A UNESCO team was visiting the delta of lush forested islands, separated by a complex network of tidal rivers and creeks, to survey the destruction, Shamsuddin said.
"We're figuring out how we will tackle the damage," he added.
"If necessary, we may have to opt for assisted natural regeneration in some areas and planting in others," he said.
Under assisted regeneration, workers clear away fallen trees and other storm debris to allow new saplings to grow.
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