New Delhi:
Authorities remained on alert as the landfall of ‘severe’ Cyclone Dana on the Odisha coast began on Thursday night and continued into the early hours of Friday. The coastal districts of Bhadrak, Kendrapara and Balasore witnessed sudden increase in wind speed which reached 100 kmph to 110 kmph and extremely heavy rain. Similar conditions were also witnessed in West Bengal.
The storm moved north-northwest at a speed of 15 kmph over the past six hours before making landfall between Bhitarkanika in the Kendrapara district and Dhamra in Bhadrak, with wind speeds of around 110 kmph, a senior IMD official said.
IMD DG Mrutunjay Mohapatra said the system will continue to remain as the severe cyclonic storm will gradually weaken on Friday and move deeper in the state, triggering heavy rains in most places.
Here are the live updates on Cyclone Dana:
Dos
- Stay Indoors: Remain inside your home and switch off electrical mains and gas supply to prevent fires and gas leaks.
- Secure Your Space: Close all doors and windows to protect against strong winds. If your home is unsafe, evacuate to a designated shelter.
- Stay Informed: Stay updated on weather forecasts and any evacuation orders through official sources like the IMD.
- Drink Safe Water: Boil or purify water to avoid waterborne diseases.
- Follow Official Guidance: Trust information from local authorities and emergency services for your safety.
Don’ts
- Don’t Enter Unsafe Buildings: Avoid entering buildings until they are deemed safe by authorities.
- Avoid Hazards Outdoors: Stay away from broken electric poles, downed wires and sharp objects that may cause injury.
- Don’t Ignore Safety Shelters: If outside, seek shelter in sturdy buildings or designated cyclone shelters to protect against flying debris.
- Avoid Returning Early: Wait for officials to declare your area safe before returning home after the cyclone.
- Don’t Handle Electrical Hazards: Stay clear of dangling wires and other electrical hazards, as they may still carry current after the cyclone has passed.
The scene of devastation caused by Cyclone Phailin in 2013 still haunts the people of Ganjam, as the Odisha government prepared for Cyclone Dana.
On October 12, 2013, Phailin made landfall near Gopalpur, destroying infrastructure in the district, claiming at least 15 lives, and damaging around 250,000 houses.
“When the district administration began preparing for the possible cyclone and prevented us from going to the sea for fishing, the memories of that dark night came flooding back,” M. Tateya, 65 from the coastal village of Aryapalli, told PTI.
“During my lifetime, I will never forget the disaster caused by Phailin, which robbed me of all my belongings, including my thatched house,’ said Laxmi, 50, of Jagdalpur.
Flight operations resumed at Kolkata’s Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport and Bhubaeswar’s Biju Patnaik International Airport at 8 am.
The first flight departed from Kolkata at 8.40 am and another arrived at 8.27 am.
The rear sector of ‘severe’ Cyclone Dana is entering into land and the landfall process is expected to continue for another hour, an IMD bulletin said.
The cyclonic system is likely to move northwestwards across north Odisha and weaken gradually into a cyclonic storm before 12 pm.
Heavy rains packed with gusty winds lashed parts of southern West Bengal, with waterlogging in various parts of Mandarmani in Purba Medinipur and Gosaba in South 24 Parganas adding to people’s misery.
Operations at Kolkata’s Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport will remain suspended until 9 AM on Friday due to expected high winds and heavy rain.
South Eastern Railway (SER), which oversees routes in West Bengal, Odisha, and Jharkhand, has cancelled more than 170 express and passenger trains scheduled between October 23 and 27.
Additionally, Eastern Railway cancelled 68 suburban trains in the Howrah division for Friday morning, while all EMU local trains from Sealdah station were suspended from Thursday evening till Friday morning.
Kolkata Port authorities also halted ship movements until Friday evening as a precautionary measure.
Rainfall intensified in the early morning hours across the affected districts, including Kolkata, which experienced moderate-to-heavy rainfall, along with hailstorms, since Thursday night.
An ‘orange’ alert has been issued in Jharkhand’s Kolhan region (West Singhbhum, Seraikela-Kharswan and East Singhbhum districts) for Friday. This category of alert indicates heavy rainfall ranging from 115 mm to 204 mm in 24 hours, the official said.
“Apart from heavy rain, the region might also experience thunderstorms and gusty winds with speeds of up to 60 kmph,” Ranchi Meteorological Centre in-charge Abhishek Anand said.
Six teams of the NDRF have been deployed in Jamshedpur and Chaibasa, while two teams were kept on standby in Ranchi to deal with any emergency situation, another official said.
Several parts of central Jharkhand, including Ranchi, Khunti, Lohardaga, Gumla and Ramgarh, may also experience heavy rainfall on Friday, Anand said.
Expressing solidarity with the people in view of cyclone ‘Dana’, West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose said that it is a moment of crisis but the state has braved many storms and will face this also with “confidence” and “fortitude”.
“Bengal will stand together and we shall overcome. My dear brothers and sisters, please follow all instructions issued by the government and disaster management authority. Please follow dos and don’ts prescribed by them. All the disaster management machinery of the state government and the Government of India are kept well-oiled and fighting fit,” he added.
The West Bengal Governor further asserted that coming together is the beginning, keeping together is progress, and working together is success. “There is no calamity that a human mind cannot overcome,” he said.
As per the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), Dana’s name was suggested by Qatar. It means “generosity” in Arabic.
The WMO says that assigning names to tropical cyclones makes tracking and discussing specific storms more “straightforward, especially when multiple storms are active simultaneously.”
“Naming also helps to avoid confusion among meteorologists, media, emergency management agencies and the public. Additionally, naming tropical cyclones can aid historical record-keeping and research on storm behaviour and impacts,” the WMO says.
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The Biju Patnaik International Airport in Bhubaneswar suspended flight operations at the airport from Thursday 5 PM to 9 AM on October 25. Earlier, the East Coast Railway had suspended more than 150 trains in view of Cyclone Dana.
All the educational institutions, parks, libraries, and museums located in the affected districts have also been closed.
The Orissa High Court will remain closed on Friday in view of the cyclonic storm.
The Odisha Public Service Commission has also postponed the Odisha Civil Services Preliminary Examination-2023.
Gale with wind speed 100-110 kmph gusting to 120 kmph is already prevailing along and off north Odisha and is likely to continue till Friday morning and decrease gradually thereafter. Gale of wind speed reaching 60-80 kmph gusting to 90 kmph is likely along and off south Odisha till Friday morning and decrease gradually thereafter, the IMD said.
The weather agency has also said that light-to-moderate rainfall in most places and heavy-to-very heavy rainfall at a few places and extremely heavy rainfall (above 21 cm) at isolated places in Balasore, Mayurbhanj, Bhadrak, Kendrapada, Jagatsingpur Keonjhar, Jajpur, Cuttack and Dhenkanal, Khurda and Puri districts are expected till October 25.
In Odisha, the coastal districts of Bhadrak, Kendrapara, Balasore and nearby Jagatsinghpur district witnessed sudden increase in wind speed which reached 100 kmph to 110 kmph and extremely heavy rain, as Cyclone Dana’s landfall commenced.
The storm moved north-northwest at a speed of 15 kmph for six hours before making landfall between Bhitarkanika in the Kendrapara district and Dhamra in Bhadrak, with wind speeds of around 110 kmph, a senior IMD official said.
IMD DG Mrutunjay Mohapatra said the landfall also accelerated the tidal surge, which could go up to two metres above the astronomical height, in Kendrapada, Balasore and Bhadrak districts. The landfall process of cyclone usually takes five to six hours, he said.
Suresh Pujari, Odisha Revenue and Disaster Management Minister, said 5.84 lakh people were evacuated, with 7,307 relief centres opened across different districts. 6,454 domestic animals were brought to relief centres, 213 medical teams were deployed to take care of the evacuated people and 120 veterinary teams have also been positioned in different locations.
Moreover, 19 National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), 51 Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF), and 220 Fire Services teams have been deployed.
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Authorities in Odisha are on alert for snapped power lines and disruption of other services and at daybreak authorities will begin the process of assessing the damage due to winds and heavy rain.
Reports of trees getting uprooted were received, however, no major damage or casualty was witnessed.
Authorities in Odisha and West Bengal evacuated lakhs of people, shut schools, cancelled more than 400 trains, and suspended flight operations as they braced for the severe cyclonic storm.
The services at Bhubaneswar’s Biju Patnaik International Airport and Kolkata’s Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, which were suspended on Thursday evening as part of precautionary measures, will resume at 9 am today.
The landfall of Cyclone Dana began on the Odisha coast on Thursday night and continued into the early hours of Friday, leading to heavy rain and strong winds of 110kmph, gusting up to 120kmph.
Reports of trees being uprooted have come in from Dhamra where the cyclone made landfall. East Midnapore in West Bengal is witnessing the impact of the cyclone the most and places like Digha have witnessed heavy rainfall.
