Odisha on high alert as cyclone nears

Cyclone Phailin hit the Andaman and Nicobar islands yesterday and is expected to reach the coast of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha over the next two days, according to the MeT department.

Officials yesterday said that a depression over north Andamans was expected to turn into a very severe cyclonic storm and cross north Andhra Pradesh and Odisha coast between Kalingapatnam and Paradeep by the night of October 12 with a maximum sustained wind speed of 175-185 kmph.

Under its influence, Odisha would have extreme to very heavy rainfall in many areas during the next 24 hours.

Distant Warning Signal Number Two (DW—II) are hoisted at Paradip and Gopalpur ports. Squally weather will prevail along and off the Odisha coast after 12 hours.

With the cyclone moving towards the State’s coast, the Odisha Government issued a high alert and cancelled Dusshera holidays for its employees in 14 districts with Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik asking Collectors to ensure the safety of the people.

The alert was issued in Balasore, Bhadrak, Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar, Dhenkanal, Jajpur, Cuttack, Kendrapara, Jagatsinghpur, Puri, Khurda, Nayagarh, Ganjam and Gajapati districts.

The state government has made elaborate preparations to meet any eventualities, and directed collectors of 14 cyclone-prone districts to deploy relief and rescue officials at vulnerable points. People will also be evacuated from low-laying areas to safer places if the need is felt for such a measure.

“We have asked all the concerned officials to stay prepared and conduct mock drills of relief and rescue forces. We have asked them to keep adequate food items, boats and tree cutting equipment ready,” Special Relief Commissioner Pradeep Kumar Mohapatra said.

He said the state has about 50 satellite phones and officials were ensuring that they work properly in case there was disruption in telephone services.

A super cyclone had struck 14 coastal districts of the state Oct 29-31, 1999.

Around 10,000 people were killed that year, as high velocity winds, blowing at nearly 300 km per hour, destroyed homes.