PHAILIN Hits Odisha, Andhra, Bihar Regions New Update

PHAILIN Hits Odisha, Andhra, Bihar Regions New Update

PHAILIN a very severe cyclonic storm, said to be the second strongest after the disastrous super-cyclone of IW9, struck the Odisha coast on Saturday, bringing in its wake torrential raias and wind speeds of over 200 kmph in the State and in the neighboring north coastal Andhra Pradesh.

Darkness enveloped wide swathes of the coastal districts of Odisha. especially Gaiijam, whose Gopa I pur-on-sea was the entry point for the storm uprooting trees and electric poles. People were forced to remain indoors by the pounding rains and vehicular traffic came to a grinding halt.

Heavy to very heavy rainfall were also widespread in the districts of Gajapati, Khurda. Puri, Jagatsinghpur. Nayagarh, Cullack. Bhadrak and Kendrapara in coastal region besides state capital Bhubaneshwar.

However, the extent of damage wreaked by the cyclone was not immediately available. Three people were killed in Odisha in the heavy rains ahead of the storm.

The cyclone made its landfall "very close to Gopalpur town" around 9 pm and has just started crossing the coast in Odisha. IMD Director General L S Rathore told reporters in New Delhi just a little later.

"Still there is scope the speed to go up as the cyclone will remain very severe for six hours. Post landfall, there will be no large change in the intensity." he said, adding that for another 12 to 24 hours, there will be moderate rains in large parts of cast India. He denied that "Phailin" was a super cyclone. Nearly six lakh people were evacuated, including 4.50 lakh in Odisha and over one lakh in Andhra Pradesh.
Phailin, the "very severe" cyclone which had formed over the Bay of Bengal, finally struck Orissa coast at 9.15 pm on Saturday with ferocity. By the time it made landfall at Gopalpur in Ganjam district, the sea storm was accompanied by gales of about 200 km per hour. According to Met officials, the eye of the storm had a diameter of 15 km when it touched the coast.
"Yes, the cyclone has made landfall at a place slightly south of Gopalpur in Orissa's Ganjam district," India Meteorological Depart-ment director L.S. Rathore told reporters in New Delhi. The next six hours are crucial. After that, it will weaken into a cyclone and then turn into depression, the IMD DG said.
As per the latest forecast by the IMD, the wind-speed is most likely to increase up to 240 kmph. According to preliminary reports, at least eight people were killed due to falling trees and wall collapse. While six persons were killed in and around Gopalpur, one woman died in Bhubaneswar when a tree fell on her. However, there was no official confirmation of the deaths.
Reports from Gopalpur, Paradip and Puri said high tides measuring up to three metres in height hit the shores. Nine villages under Sishu panchayat in Konark area were completely inundated. Sources said sea water ran into Gopalpur town and the adjoining villages, flooding several houses and business establishments. The cyclone resulted in heavy to very heavy rainfall in Srikakulam in north coastal Andhra Pradesh and Orissa. However, Visakha-patnam remained more or less dry. Srikakulam district bore the brunt as Phailin made landfall. Cellphone towers collapsed, trees were uprooted, electric poles twisted, rail tracts were inundated and communication lines disrupted. Orissa too faced a similar fate. Parts of Vizianagaram also witnessed heavy rains.
AP relief commissioner T. Radha said, "No deaths have been reported in Srikakulam or in any other district in our state so far.
Heavy rainfall has been reported in Srikakulam with gale winds of 180 kmph to 200 kmph as per information provided by Srikakulam special collector Anantarami Reddy.
People stayed indoors either in cyclone shelters or houses due to the cyclone warning." "The cyclone will take another few hours to cross the coast. We have evacuated around 1.29 lakh people, including 80,000 in Srikakulam. It's raining heavily in Srikakulam and parts of Vizianagaram."

Cyclone Phailin's destructive effects will be felt till Sunday morning, warned Met officials. According to the Indian Meteorological Depart-ment, the North Coastal region has been witnessing heavy rainfall and for the next 48 hours, till the evening of October 13, coastal districts and North Telangana will witness heavy rainfall.

ओडिशा के तटीय जिले गंजम के गोपालपुर ऑन सी के रास्ते 'फैलिन' रात नौ बजे आ पहुंचा. 1999 में आए महा चक्रवात के बाद यह अब तक का दूसरा सबसे भीषण तूफान माना जा रहा है. 200 किलोमीटर प्रति घंटे की तेज हवाओं और तूफानी बारिश के साथ आ धमके 'फैलिन' की वजह से राज्य समेत निकटवर्ती उत्तरी तटीय आंध्र प्रदेश में मूसलाधार बारिश और तेज हवाओं की चपेट में है. मौसम विभाग के अनुसार अभी चक्रवात की रफ्तार बढ.ने की आशंका बनी हुई है और यह छह घंटे तक बहुत भीषण रह सकता है. तटीय इलाके में पहुंचने के बाद भी इसके वेग में कोई ज्यादा कमी नहीं आने वाली. तूफान से भारी तबाही की आशंका है लेकिन वास्तविक स्थिति सुबह ही साफ हो पाएगी.
चक्रवात के सीधे प्रभाव में आने वाले इलाकों में सेना, वायु सेना, नौसेना, सीआरपीएफ और राष्ट्रीय आपदा प्रतिक्रिया बल के जवानों को तैनात किया गया है. चक्रवात का केंद्र गोपालपुर के 150 किमी दक्षिण-पूर्व और पारादीप के 260 किमी दक्षिण-पूर्व में है. सुरक्षात्मक तौर पर बिजली आपूर्ति रोकने से ओडिशा के तटीय जिले खासकर गंजम अंधकार में डूब गया. तूफान से पहले हुई भारी वर्षा के कारण आठ लोगों की मौत हो गई. शेष पेज 8 पर..

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