Cyclone Phailin, the worst storm to hit the eastern coast in 14 years, had its landfall near Gopalpur at 9 pm with windspeeds of up to 210 km.
With telecom towers getting damaged and no electricity for nearly two days, people spent perhaps the worst night of their lives worried about their near and dear ones. Apart from the sheer intensity of the cyclone, lack of essential items like, candles and even potatoes, it is loss of contact with family and friends that is driving people crazy. The worst storm to hit the eastern coast in 14 years, Phailin has affected 1.2 crore people and left a trail of devastation across a 400-km arc along the Indian coastline across Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. It has thrown everyday life completely out of gear in 14 districts and has had a severe impact on business in the two states.
Officials of the Air Force, Army, Navy and Coast Guard, along with 2,300 personnel of National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF) were on standby on Sunday waiting to venture into the coastal areas and start relief operations as soon as the weather improves a bit.
According to officials, there were 14 casualties in Odisha, with a few deaths being reported before the cyclone hit. The first to get hit, even before the cyclone had its landfall near Gopalpur on Odisha coast on Saturday evening, were small shops and business establishments as markets remained closed due to heavy rainfall and gutsy winds with transactions worth hundreds of crores getting stalled. Since it coincided with the festive season currently underway when normal business receives a major boost, the loss was further multiplied.
Communication links to Puri and Bhubaneswar remained affected on Sunday too. Most flights and some 180 trains have been cancelled across the two states, across three railway zones — East Coast, South Central and South Eastern Railways, including the service between Howrah and Visakhapatnam. With high tension towers and signals getting uprooted, platforms damaged and tracks blocked by trees uprooted by high-velocity winds in Odisha, East Coast Railways said no trains were moving in Bhadrak-Khurda Road-Palasa-Vizianagaram sections. The Railways is using satellite phones and DG sets to overcome the communication and power crisis.
Special Relief Commissioner PK Mohapatra said more than 80.5 lakh people in over 14,500 villages have been affected by the cyclone.
Commenting on Phailin, UK-based global think tank, Overseas Development Institute (ODI), head of Climate change, Dr Tom Mitchell said: “This is about livelihoods as well as lives. Over the two decades many parts of India, including Andhra Pradesh, will be increasingly exposed to disasters. Credit is due to those who have been involved in efforts to reduce the scale of vulnerability to disasters across India. The low loss of life, following the strongest storm ever measured in the Bay of Bengal, would almost certainly not have been possible without learning lessons from previous cyclones and tsunamis that have hit this coastline.”
An ODI report exploring the future geography of disasters and poverty in the region will be released this week.
The Eastern Naval Command based at Visakhapatnam said two Navy ships were on standby. Some 2,300 personnel of National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF) were spread across the two states waiting to venture into the coastal areas as soon as the weather improves a bit. Official said disaster assessment can take place only after the wind speed decreases. Five columns of the Army have moved from Ranchi to Bhubaneswar and 18 IAF helicopters were on standby for relief and rescue work. While major tourist centres like Puri were without electricity since Friday, Odisha capital Bhubaneswar too plunged into darkness with authorities deciding to switch off electricity since Friday.
Compared to the super cyclone in 1999, this time both Odisha and AP were much better equipped for the impending crisis. Improved observation data, better computational facilities and refined models led the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) to come up with highly accurate predictions on Cyclone Phailin's path and its strength.
The cyclone, categorised as being of Intensity 6 by the IMD, triggered the biggest evacuation in the country’s history, with 8 lakh people in the line of devastation moved to safer areas by Saturday afternoon. The level of preparedness also minimised Phailin’s impact compared to the super cyclone in 1999.
However, the exact quantum of the damage caused by Phailin, including damage to crops and livestock, is yet to be ascertained as the state authorities have switched off power supplies to a number of vulnerable districts. There is threat of flooding in several areas. Electricity poles have been uprooted in many places and this is likely to take days to be restored.
In view of the cyclone-induced setback to Odisha’s power system, the West Bengal government is ready to extend a helping hand, in case, the state asks for it.
The damage to business along the coast in Phailin’s wake is estimated to be large, though it has not yet been ascertained. Paradip Port, one of the busiest in the eastern coast, faced gale force winds of up to 180 km and waves reached a height of nearly 5 metres at the mouth of the port when the cyclone struck. A decision to let all vessels sail off by the evening on Friday, October 11, saved major casualties at the Paradip Port.
Coast Guard officials said despite the warnings, one cargo vessel, MV Bingo, carrying 2125 metric tonne (MT) iron-ore and 232 MT fuel oil and 30 MT petroleum had apparently sailed off from Sagar anchorage at around 6 pm on Saturday. It had 17 Chinese crew members and one from Myanmar. Around 6.30 pm, the Haldia port authorities received SOS calls from the vessel. It was sighted few kilometers off the Sagar anchorage with the ship being stuck and after it tilted 45 degrees to the left. The crew were sighted on a raft but could not be rescued. On Sunday morning, port authorities found no traces of either the vessel or the crew. Later the Coast Guard made three sorties and finally traced the crew. Rescue operations are currently underway to bring them back on land.
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