8 Lakh People Evacuated From Coastal Areas As Cyclone 'Fani' Is Set To Make Landfall In Odisha

Cyclonic storm Fani is expected to further intensify in the coming hours before it is expected to make landfall on Friday afternoon. Fani, which has been categorised as Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm is accompanied by wind at the speed of 175-185 kmph and tides that could surge up to 1.5 metres.

BCCL

While coastal Odisha is no stranger to cyclones, for many, Fani is different and intense. According to experts, it is after nearly a decade a cyclone with such intensity has formed in the Bay of Bengal during this time of the year. The last time it happened was in 2008 and left more than 1.25 lakh people dead in Myanmar.

AFP

This is also only the second time a severe cyclone has formed in the Bay of Bengal in the month of April and cross over to the Indian mainland, in the last 118 years.

According to the Indiana Meteorological Department (IMD) Fani is located around 230 km south-southeast of Visakhapatnam and 420 km south-southwest of Puri. It is likely to move north-northeast wards and cross Odisha Coast between Gopalpur and Chandbali, around Puri during the afternoon of May 3.

REUTERS

The cyclonic storm is likely to impact coastal districts like Ganjam, Gajapati, Khurda, Puri and Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Bhadrak, Jajpur and Balasore.

With hardly a day left for Cyclone Fani to make landfall, the state government is not leaving anything to chance.

So far around 8 lakh people living in coastal districts have been evacuated to safer places. Schools and other educational institutions have been asked to remain shut and personnel from the NDFF,? Indian Navy, Coast Guard have been deployed to tackle any emergency.

At least 103 trains that pass through the region have been canceled or diverted two more in view of cyclone Fani.

In a rare move, the famed Jagannath Temple in Puri has replaced the temple flag ‘Patitapabana Bana’ with a short flag as a precautionary measure for protection.?