Heavy rain in Odisha and West Bengal as cyclone Dana approaches

Heavy rainfall lashed parts of West Bengal and Odisha today as the states brace for the cyclone Dana to make landfall between Bhitarkanika National Park and Dhamra port later in the night or early Friday (October 25). India Meteorological Department (IMD) said the maximum wind speed during the landfall process is likely to be around 120 kmph.

Giving the latest update about the cyclone, Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, Director General of Meteorology, said, “At present, the wind speed in coastal areas is 60-70 kmph. Wind speed will be very high in Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapada, Bhadrak, Balasore, and Medinipur districts. The intensity of rainfall will increase gradually. A few districts such as Khurda, Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapada, Bhadrak, Balasore, Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar, Dhenkanal, Cuttack are likely to get extremely heavy rainfall.”

After reviewing the cyclone preparedness in Odisha, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi said evacuation will be completed in the next few hours. As many as 7285 cyclone shelters have been prepared with basic facilities to accommodate evacuated people and 2339 pregnant women expecting delivery in two weeks have been shifted to various hospitals, Majhi added.

The IMD has prohibited all marine activities, including fishing, in the Bay of Bengal until the cyclone has passed. Eastern and South Eastern railways cancelled a large number of trains on October 24 and 25, in view of the cyclone.

By Wednesday evening, around 300,000 people had been evacuated in Odisha, while West Bengal had moved over 114,000 residents to shelters.

As the cyclone rapidly approaches the state’s coastline, various activities have been suspended, including operations at the Odisha High Court, Biju Patnaik International Airport, the ports at Paradip and Dhamra, as well as all educational institutions and other services, due to the looming disaster.

The Met department warned of heavy to very heavy rainfall with extremely heavy downpours in isolated places in the south Bengal districts of North and South 24 Parganas, Purba and Paschim Medinipur, Jhargram, Kolkata, Howrah and Hooghly districts on October 24 and 25.

The Indian Navy is gearing up to carry out any necessary Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations. Additionally, they have confirmed that ships loaded with supplies and rescue teams are ready and on standby for potential relief missions. According to a statement by the Navy, the Eastern Naval command, while coordinating with Naval officers-in-charge (NOIC) in Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, and West Bengal, have activated a comprehensive disaster response mechanism.

The Navy has sent essential clothing, drinking water, food, medicines, and emergency relief materials by road to various locations which are likely to be affected due to cyclone Dana. Flood relief and diving teams are reportedly being mobilised to assist in coordinated rescue and relief operations if needed.

National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) on Wednesday (October 23) informed that they are trying to create awareness of cyclone Dana in various districts of Odisha, including Mahakalpada and Kendrapara. The NDRF team went door-to-door with loudspeakers making people aware of the cyclonic storm.