Unprecedented devastation is highly anticipated as one of the strongest cyclones in India’s history, Fani, is set to make landfall in and around the country’s coastal areas. The tropical cyclone had started gaining strength on Thursday and has already entered the territories of the Indian states, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. The wind speed has been estimated to be something around 155 miles per hour and can go up to 190 miles per hour. Fani is being considered to be equivalent to a supertyphoon in the Pacific or a Category 4 hurricane in the Atlantic. It is creating an excessive amount of rainfall in the areas where it has made the landfall.
What Is a Category 4 Hurricane?
Category 4 hurricanes are generally powerful and devastating tropical cyclones that have the ability to reach Category 4 intensity on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. It is in fact, the second-highest classification category and cyclonic storms of this kind of intensity are potent to reach speeds of 130 to 156 miles per hour. These storms are considered as hurricanes of extreme levels. Fani has been recorded to possess the same levels of intensity. The consequences can be dreadful as 100 million people are said to be in the line of the such a high-intensity storm.
India’s History Of Cyclones
The Bay of Bengal has witnessed a lot of tropical cyclones that have caused menace time and again. The most affected parts have been the eastern coastal regions of India and Bangladesh too. A similar high-intensity cyclonic storm had hit Orissa in the year 1999, which is said to have snatched away around 10, 000 lives. On 11th November 1970, the Bhola cyclone deviated from India’s path towards Bangladesh and took a toll on millions of people residing there. Cyclone Nargis is said to be the deadliest cyclone in the North Indian Ocean basin. It is also considered to be the second-deadliest cyclone ever. From time to time, the Indian population has reeled under the devastation that these cyclones have brought about. Cyclone Fani is the latest of all the major catastrophic incidents in India in recorded history.
Latest Updates
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The latest news update is that more than 800,000 people have been evacuated from the eastern coastal area of India. According to the recent reports, 2 people have lost their lives in Odisha after the cyclone hit the state at 9:30 am. 11 districts near the Odisha coast have been placed on red alert and almost 900 shelters were set up to give shelter to the evacuees. Flights and rail services have been canceled and people have had to postpone their journey dates. Special flights will be operated in order to clear backlogs. According to the Indian Meteorological Department, Fani is expected to move northeast towards Kolkata and Bangladesh and can weaken into a severe cyclonic storm within the next 6 hours.
How Did The Indian Government Respond?
The evacuation process has been carried out on war-footing. The coastal areas on the eastern half of India are expected to bear the maximum devastation and the Government of India is taking every possible precautionary measure to minimize the damage. Tourists to the Odishan coastal town of Puri, have been asked to leave as soon as possible. Fishermen have been warned not to go out into the sea at any cost. The state disaster management department of the Indian state of West Bengal is doing everything possible to bring the tourists back safely from coastal regions of Digha and Mandarmani. The Indian government has announced total financial assistance of Rs. 1,086 crore. West Bengal will be receiving Rs. 233.50 crore, whereas Odisha will be receiving rs. 340.87 crore, revealed the home ministry.
The Indian Government has done its bit in protecting the civilians, especially from the states of West Bengal and Odisha. Odisha has endured a more severe cyclonic storm previously and the world is praying for their safety. The tourists are expected to return back to their bases within a short period of time and as far as the locals are concerned, appropriate provisions have been made. Fani is expected to weaken in the due course of time. No one has any sort of control on natural calamities, but necessary steps can be taken to ward off any severe consequences. The world community is waiting with bated breath for the storm to lose its intensity.