Bangladesh moves Rohingya to island shelters as huge cyclone nears

Preparations are underway for Cyclone Amphan in a Rohingya refugee camp outside the port town of Cox's Bazar in Bangladesh, May 20, 2020. REUTERS/Sabbir Ahmed

DHAKA/COX'S BAZAR (Reuters) - Authorities in Bangladesh have moved hundreds of Rohingya refugees living on a flood-prone island in the Bay of Bengal to storm shelters as super cyclone Amphan, the strongest recorded in the region, barrels down, they said on Wednesday.

The eastern edge of the storm headed for Bangladesh and neighbouring India is expected to batter Bhasan Char island, where 306 Rohingya, members of a persecuted minority from Myanmar, were sent this month after being rescued from boats.