Cyclone Jawad: Rain lashes Odisha’s Puri; over 54,000 evacuated in Andhra ahead of landfall

Mangalore Today News Network

Hyderabad, Dec 04, 2021: The Andhra Pradesh government has evacuated a total of 54,008 people from three districts ahead of the landfall of Cyclone Jawad, which is likely to reach the state’s north coast over the weekend. The cyclone is likely to make landfall somewhere in Odisha’s Puri before heading out to the Bay of Bengal.

 

The rescue team has evacuated 15,755 people from the Srikakulam district, 1,700 from Vizianagaram, and 36,553 from Visakhapatnam.

According to the Meteorological Department (IMD), at 11:30 pm on Friday, the cyclonic storm lay centered over the west-central Bay of Bengal about 250 km southeast of Visakhapatnam, 430 km south-southwest of Puri, and 510 km south-southwest of Paradip.

The cyclonic storm is likely to move north-northwestwards till Saturday morning, and then recurve north northeastwards reaching Puri coast around December 5 noon.Cyclone Jawad is likely to make landfall somewhere in Puri before heading out to the Bay of Bengal, the state’s Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) PK Jena said on Friday.Going by the projected trajectory of the cyclone, as issued by the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the system may strike the Puri coast and return to the sea, he told reporters in Bhubaneswar, adding that winds gusting at 90-100 kmph will likely impact the district at landfall.

The speed may gradually decrease after touching the Odisha coast, he said.

"There’s also a possibility of the cyclonic system changing its course avoiding landfall in Odisha. It could just pass along the coastline, with Puri experiencing a rub-off effect," PK Jena said.

Meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy held a review meeting with collectors of cyclone-prone districts of Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam, East and West Godavari. The chief minister directed the officials to alert people and ensure that there was no loss of life in the coastal region.

The state government has set up a total of 197 relief camps in schools and community halls. Of these, 79 relief camps have been set up in Srikakulam, while 54 relief camps have been set up in Vizianagaram and 64 in Visakhapatnam.

The officials have been directed to provide quality food in relief camps. They have also been asked to ensure that proper hygiene is maintained at the relief camps.

In view of heavy rain predicted for the region by the IMD, the chief minister directed the officials to ensure that restoration work begins immediately after the rain subsides.

Eleven teams of the National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF), five teams of the State Disaster Relief Force (SDRF), six teams of Coast Guard, and 10 teams of Marine Police have been deployed to tackle the situation.

Village secretaries and district collectorates will remain on high alert and will function throughout the night. Hospitals have also been asked to ensure power back up to tackle emergency situations.

Apart from this, as many as two helicopters are on standby, and Rs 1 crore has been released to tackle any unforeseen situation.

All government-aided and private schools affiliated with the School and Mass Education Department in 19 districts of Odisha will remain closed on Saturday (December 4) ahead of Cyclone ’Jawad’ landfall, the department said in a notice.

The state government had earlier cancelled an ongoing classical dance festival and a sand art event in Puri district following the formation of the cyclonic storm.

Meanwhile, the NDRF has earmarked a total of 64 teams to tackle the situation arising out of the impending cyclonic storm ’Jawad’ that is expected to affect the states of Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal this weekend.

According to the deployment map shared by NDRF Director General (DG) Atul Karwal, out of the 46 teams, 19 are based in West Bengal, 17 in Odisha, 19 in Andhra Pradesh, apart from seven in Tamil Nadu and two in Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

All teams have been made available as desired by the various state governments and they will be deployed in consultation with local authorities, the NDRF DG said.

Courtesy:India Today