Cyclone Nirav made landfall near Puducherry last night.
Highlight
- Cyclone Nirav made landfall near Puducherry at 2:30 a.m. M.
- More than 2 lakh people evacuated to safety in Tamil Nadu, Puducherry
- State governments say they have been working on a “war footing”
Chennai:
Cyclone Nivar, which turned from a “very severe cyclonic storm” to a “severe cyclonic storm”, made landfall near the coastal city of Marakkanam in Tamil Nadu, 30 km north of Puducherry at around 2:30 am. More than two lakh people have been evacuated to safety in coastal states that had been preparing for the cyclone, the fifth strongest category on the scale of seven types of storms in India. While the damage assessment is underway, state governments say they have been working “on the warpath” amid heavy rains and flooding in many parts.
Here are 10 developments in this great story:
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Puducherry saw an unprecedented 20cm rain in the past 20 hours, Chief Minister V Narayanasamy said, adding that the state is still reviewing the damage. “Puducherry has flooded and many trees have fallen,” he said this morning. There are power outages in many parts of the union territory and in the Tamil Nadu city of Cuddalore after power was cut off during landfall accompanied by strong winds.
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The tropical storm, which originated in the Bay of Bengal, forced authorities in southern states to declare a public holiday until Thursday, close Chennai airport and metro services. The cyclone “has completely moved to land and” has weakened into a severe cyclonic storm; it would weaken further into a cyclonic storm in the next six hours. The heavy rains would continue, ”said Dr. S. Balachandran, Director of the Chennai Meteorological Department.
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Puducherry and the coastal districts of Tamil Nadu, including Cuddalore and Nagapattinam, continue to receive rain and experience strong winds. More than two lakhs of people were transferred to cyclone shelters in the two states on Wednesday. In Cuddalore, one of the districts where damage was likely, more than 50,000 people were taken to safety in 233 government shelters, said collector Chandra Sekhar.
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Tamil Nadu’s Chief Minister E Palaniswami called on people to stay indoors as long as possible, saying more than 4,000 “vulnerable” places have been identified and local officials have been told to ensure the safety of people. This morning, the Minister of Disaster Management, RB Udhaya Kumar, said: “We are waiting for details on the damages. The Chief Minister would announce them along with the aid and compensation.”
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About 1,200 personnel from the National Disaster Response Force have been stationed in Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and neighboring Andhra Pradesh as well, NDRF chief SN Pradhan told PTI. Twelve teams are in Tamil Nadu (six in Cuddalore district and two in Chennai), seven in Andhra Pradesh and three in Puducherry. Another 20 teams will be on standby at Odisha’s Cuttack, Vijaywada in Andhra Pradesh and Thrissur in Kerala.
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Chennai government officials dumped water from a major reservoir and cleaned up fallen trees. Ships in the city’s port have moved out to sea and port operations will likely remain closed until the cyclone passes, a senior port official said. With memories of the 2015 floods still fresh, Tamil Nadu is also monitoring four other reservoirs in anticipation of a rapid rise in water levels.
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The Indian Navy said yesterday that it was closely monitoring Nivar’s movement and was in constant contact with officials from the Tamil Nadu and Puducherry governments. The boats, planes and rescue and diving teams have been kept on standby.
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An alert was issued at the Madras Atomic Power Station (MAPS) in Tamil Nadu’s Kalpakkam, which is about 20 km from Mamallapuram. Authorities were closely monitoring the weather to take necessary action, officials told the PTI news agency.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted earlier on Tuesday: “I spoke with Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Shri Edappadi K Palaniswami and Puducherry Chief Minister Shri V Narayanasamy about the situation in the wake of Cyclone Nivar. I secured full support. possible of the Center and well-being of those who live in the affected areas. “
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Andhra Pradesh’s chief minister, Jagan Mohan Reddy, had also sounded a red flag. The state is expected to receive heavy rains as Nivar moves inland. The districts of Nellore and Chittoor are on alert, as are parts of Kadapa, Kurnool and Anantpur, with between 11 and 20 cm of rain and wind speeds of up to 75 km per hour are expected. Fishermen have been warned not to go out to sea and floods in low-lying areas have been warned.
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