The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has advised tourists to avoid coastal regions of Bangladesh following the devastation of Cyclone Sidr.
Visits to tourist spots along the coast, such as the popular city of Chittagong, have been ruled out as the country struggles to cope with the enormity of the disaster.
It is estimated that the cyclone, which struck on November 15th and 16th, has claimed over 2,200 lives so far in a disaster that has been referred to as a "national calamity" by the Bangladeshi government.
Deputy director of the Cyclone Preparedness Programme (CPP), Md Shahid Ullah, told Reuters: "This is a huge disaster and we will know the full picture only after later."
"Ninety-five per cent of all the 40,000 houses in this sub-district have been washed away," local administrator Salim Khan explained to the AFP news agency.
In addition to the loss of life and residential devastation, food stocks, crops and livestock have also been severely affected following a six-meter tidal wave that washed along the coast.
The Bangladeshi authorities have established a state of emergency rule and have enlisted the assistance of the military in an attempt to help with the relief effort.
