Amphan: Shah promises help to Odisha, Bengal; IMD alert to fishermen   

Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday (May 19) spoke to Naveen Patnaik and Mamata Banerjee, the chief ministers of Odisha and West Bengal, the two states which are expected to take the maximum hit of super cyclone Amphan, and assured them of all help.

Meanwhile, rain lashed some parts of Odisha on Tuesday as the cyclone moved closer to the coasts. In the morning, Amphan lay centred over west-central Bay of Bengal, about 520 km south of Paradip (Odisha), 670 km south-southwest of Digha (West Bengal) and 800 km south-southwest of Khepupara in Bangladesh, said HR Biswas, the director of Meteorological Centre, Bhubaneswar.

He said it is likely to weaken in to an extremely severe cyclonic storm, move north-northeastwards over Bay of Bengal and cross West Bengal-Bangladesh coasts between Digha and Hatiya Islands during Wednesday (May 20) afternoon or evening with maximum sustained wind speed of 155-165 kmph gusting to 180 kmph.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a warning to fishermen in both the states to suspend all fishing activities till May 20.

Bengal’s east Medinipur, south and north 24 Parganas, Howrah, Hoogly and Kolkata districts and Odisha’s Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Bhadrak, Balasore, Jajpur and Mayurbhanj districts are likely to be worst-hit by the cyclone.

According to PTI, the cyclone is being continuously tracked by the Doppler Weather Radar (DWR) at Vishakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh. Under its impact, light rains were witnessed in several areas of Puri, Kendrapara, Jagatsinghpur and Khurda districts of Odisha, and the intensity of rainfall and wind speed is likely to increase gradually, a Met official told PTI.

IMD Director-General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said since the super cyclone is gradually weakening, its impact is unlikely to be very severe on Odisha. However, coastal districts like Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Bhadrak and Balasore are likely to be battered by heavy rains coupled with high velocity winds from Tuesday evening, he said.

Both the states meanwhile have started evacuation measures. While the Odisha government has evacuated 11 lakh people from coastal areas, the West Bengal government too has evacuated people from low-lying areas. Odisha has cancelled Shramik Special trains which were due for arrival between May 18 and 20.

On Tuesday, Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba held a meeting of the National Crisis Monitoring Committee to discuss preparedness for the cyclone.

Related news: Amphan to weaken into extremely severe cyclonic storm: Met

Meanwhile, the Border Security Force (BSF) has moved its three floating border posts or ships and 45 other patrol boats deployed to guard the India-Bangladesh riverine front in the Sunderbans and Icchamati river in West Bengal to safe anchorage in view of the cyclone. These vessels are used by the south Bengal frontier of the border force to guard about 350 km of the riverine border in this area. The BSF protects over 930 km of the international border under this frontier that includes 110 km of the Sunderbans, Estuary Point, Icchamati river and Panitar, where the land and riverine borders of the two countries meet.

A team of experts like electricians, masons and engineering personnel have also been sent to the riverine border fronts so that they can help in reviving the damaged infrastructure as soon as possible, Guleria, who has earlier served in the NDRF, said. He said satellite phones have also been provided to the riverine border posts so that communication links are on, he added. A control room has been established for the cyclone related operations at Hasnabad that will be supervised by a senior officer from ground, he added. A senior BSF officer said the force is coordinating with the National Disaster Response Force and local authorities to evacuate locals to safer places and initiate search and rescue operations once the cyclone makes a landfall on May 20.

The IMD has warned that the cyclone is expected to cause extensive damage to districts in its trail, including destruction of thatched houses and damage to standing crops and has advised people to stay indoors.

(With inputs from agencies)