
Sign up to save your podcasts
Or


500,000 people died in one night. The government didn't send help. 🌪️🇧🇩 We investigate the 1970 Bhola Cyclone. We break down how the deadliest storm in human history hit East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and how the West Pakistani government’s refusal to send aid turned a natural disaster into a political revolution.
1. The Physics of Death: It was a bowl of water. We analyze the geography. We discuss why the Ganges Delta is a "death trap" for cyclones, where a 20-foot storm surge pushed water inland with nowhere to go. We explain the scale of the tragedy: up to 500,000 lives lost, wiping out entire islands.
2. The "Criminal Neglect": They had helicopters. They didn't use them. We expose the betrayal. We discuss the reaction of dictator Yahya Khan and the West Pakistani elite, who downplayed the disaster and delayed relief. We explain how this apathy proved to the Bengali people that their government didn't view them as citizens, but as expendable subjects.
3. The Blood Telegram: From disaster to genocide. We explore the aftermath. We discuss Archer Blood, the US diplomat who sent the famous "Blood Telegram" dissenting against Nixon’s support for Pakistan during the subsequent genocide. We analyze how the cyclone was the catalyst that led directly to the Liberation War and the birth of Bangladesh.
The full list of sources used to create this episode can be found on our Patreon under https://www.patreon.com/c/Morgrain
By Morgrain500,000 people died in one night. The government didn't send help. 🌪️🇧🇩 We investigate the 1970 Bhola Cyclone. We break down how the deadliest storm in human history hit East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and how the West Pakistani government’s refusal to send aid turned a natural disaster into a political revolution.
1. The Physics of Death: It was a bowl of water. We analyze the geography. We discuss why the Ganges Delta is a "death trap" for cyclones, where a 20-foot storm surge pushed water inland with nowhere to go. We explain the scale of the tragedy: up to 500,000 lives lost, wiping out entire islands.
2. The "Criminal Neglect": They had helicopters. They didn't use them. We expose the betrayal. We discuss the reaction of dictator Yahya Khan and the West Pakistani elite, who downplayed the disaster and delayed relief. We explain how this apathy proved to the Bengali people that their government didn't view them as citizens, but as expendable subjects.
3. The Blood Telegram: From disaster to genocide. We explore the aftermath. We discuss Archer Blood, the US diplomat who sent the famous "Blood Telegram" dissenting against Nixon’s support for Pakistan during the subsequent genocide. We analyze how the cyclone was the catalyst that led directly to the Liberation War and the birth of Bangladesh.
The full list of sources used to create this episode can be found on our Patreon under https://www.patreon.com/c/Morgrain