Odisha, Andhra brace for 'very severe' cyclone Phailin to hit

Armed forces in Odisha brace for approaching cyclone Phailin

06.20 pm | The "very severe" storm Phailin is unlikely to turn into a "super cyclone" like the one which hit the coastal areas of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh in 1999, the MET department today said.

"Although Phailin is on the border of being termed a super cyclone and has good resemblance of the 1999 storm, we have come to an understanding that it will not turn into a super cyclone. The storm will be around 210-220 kmph, but it is unlikely to intensify any further," said IMD Director General LS Rathore.

05.40 pm | Odisha and Andhra Pradesh today braced for the "very severe" cyclone that is expected to hit the east coast with winds gusting up to 220 kmph tomorrow evening, as lakhs of people were being evacuated to safer places and the military kept on standby.

Cyclone Phailin--the biggest cyclone in years to hit Odisha--is expected to make landfall near Gopalpur in Ganjam district in the eastern state after crossing an area between Paradip in Odisha and Kalingapatnam in AP.

 

Five districts were in the eye of the storm with IMD Chief Dr L S Rathore identifying Ganjam, Khurda, Puri and Jagatsinghpur districts in Odisha and Srikakalum in AP as those that is likely to be worst hit.

 

Rathore said the cyclone storm over east central Bay of Bengal currently lay 450 km southeast of Gopalpur and warned that it will be accompanied by a storm surge of up to three metres in the districts that will bear the brunt. (PTI)

04.25 pm | As Cyclone Phailin approaches Odisha, Defence Minister A.K. Antony has asked the armed forces to be prepared. 

Two IL-76 aircraft have airlifted National Disaster Response Force teams and equipment to Bhubneshwar, official sources said. 

Air force assets have been kept on stand-by at various bases, including Raipur, Nagpur, Jagdalpur, Barrackpore, Ranchi and Gwalior.

The aircraft kept on stand-by include two C130Js, 18 helicopters, and two AN-32 aircraft, which can move at short notice. (IANS)

03.30 pm | Residents of low-lying villages on the coast of Odisha and Andhra began evacuating as cyclonic storm Phailin is set to lash the coastal districts of the two states on Saturday. Phailin is categorised as a Category 4 cyclonic storm on a scale of 1 to 5, according to London-based storm tracking service Tropical Storm Risk.

02.00 pm | Authorities have evacuated 40,000 people from 40 villages to government-run shelters, schools and buildings in five districts of Odisha.

Officials plan to take another 100,000 people to safer areas before the cyclone hits the region. Odisha revenue and disaster management minister said that no one will be allowed to stay in mud and thatched houses in the coastal areas.

 

01.40 pm | Defence Minister AK Antony has asked armed forces to be ready to move in to Odisha and Andhra Pradesh in view of cyclone Phailin.

1.10 pm | Authorites fear 'extreme damage' and flooding in low-lying districts of coastal Andhra. People have been asked to evacuate low-lying areas in Srikakulam. Phailin may hit hardest in Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam, East and West Godavari districts. Teams of the National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF) have started preparing for the cyclone in the five districts.


12.36 pm |  People in Visakhapatnam are stocking up on food and fuel. There has been a sudden rise in the sale of candles. Schools and colleges in the town  are closed; associations are moving around the district and advising people to prepare for the cyclone, reports HindustanTimes.com

ALSO SEE | Cyclone Phailin (Wikipedia)

Phailin, size of Katrina, headed for India (The Washington Post)

A Satellite Image Shows the Position of Cyclone Phailin Formed Over East Central Bay of Bengal on Friday. (Image Courtesy: IMD)


12.10 pm | The Andhra Pradesh government is gearing up to deal with the impact of the cyclonic storm 'Phailin', which is likely to cause damage in coastal districts of the state.

Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy has reviewed the government's preparedness to face the impact of the cyclone and directed officials to take all precautionary measures.

Reports from coastal districts said it was raining and that the sea was rough. Heavy rains have begun under the influence of the system.


11. 30 am | "The very severe cyclonic storm, PHAILIN over east central Bay of Bengal moved west-northwestwards with a speed of 15 kmph and lay centred about 520km south-southeast of Paradip, 530 from Gopalpur and 530km east-southeast of Kalingapatnam," the IMD said in its latest bulletin.

IMD, which till Thursday night expected that the wind speed would remain limited within 185 kmph during landfall on Saturday, said in its latest bulletin that Phailin would hit with increased intensity with a maximum sustained speed of 205-215 kmph.


11.07 am | Cyclone Phailin has been upgraded to a super cyclone with meteorologists saying that it could be the strongest tropical storm worldwide this year. The wind speed is expected to be between 250 and 260 km per hour as it heads towards Odisha and Andhra Pradesh coasts.

Satellite images showed the storm in the Bay of Bengal to be about half the size of India.

Odisha Control Room numbers:

 

Ganjam 06811-263978
 

Puri 06752-223237

Kendrapara 06727-232803

Jagatsinghpur 06724-220368

Balasore 06782-262674

Bhadrak 06784-251881

Mayurbhanj 06792-252759

Jajpur 06728-222648

Gajapati 06815-222943

Dhenkanal 06762-221376

Khurda 06755-220002

Keonjhar 06766-255437

Cuttak 0671-2507842

(PTI)

10.50 am | The storm may hit coastal Odisha and Andhra Pradesh at around 5:30 pm on Saturday. In Odisha, officials fear the wind speed could touch levels higher than that of the deadly super-cyclone in 1999 when over 10,000 people died.


10. 40 am | In Andhra Pradesh, north coastal districts of Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam are likely to experience very heavy rain from tomorrow evening and other coastal districts would also receive heavy rainfall.

 

Cyclone Phailin over the Bay of Bengal has slightly intensified further and moved north-westwards. 

 

It is likely to cross north Andhra Pradesh and Odisha coast between Kalingapatnam and Paradip, close to Gopalpur (Odisha) by Saturday evening.

 

There is heavy rainfall in parts of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. The Army, Navy and Air Force are on standby in both states for emergency and relief operations, reports NDTV.com.

 

As per the latest update from the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), on Thursday, the cyclone over east central Bay of Bengal will gain intensity and turn into a very severe cyclonic storm with a maximum sustained wind speed of 190-200 kmph at landfall.

 

Chief Ministers of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, Naveen Patnaik and Kiran Kumar Reddy took stock of the situation in Bhubhaneswar and Hyderabad and directed officials to take all precautionary measures to protect life and property. 

 

The Odisha government has cancelled the Durga puja leave of government officials in 14 districts. The districts likely to be hit are Ganjam, Puri, Khurda and Jagatsinghpur.

In 1999, a super cyclone battered the coast of Odisha for 30 hours with wind speeds reaching 300 kph. It killed 10,000 people.