Cyclone Titli Highlights: Several coastal districts in Odisha are receiving heavy rainfall since early morning after the cyclone ‘Titli’ hit the Gopalpur area of Ganjam at 5:30 am. According to state administration, several mud houses, trees and electric poles have been uprooted due to high-intensity storm. The neighbouring northern Andhra Pradesh is also receiving rainfall since morning. The IMD has said that the surface wind speed in Gopalpur is around 126 kmph and it will pass Odisha coast by late afternoon. The five Odisha districts that have come under the influence of cyclone Titli are Ganjam, Khurda, Puri, Jagatsinghpur and Kendrapara. So far, more than 3 lakh people from these districts have been evacuated. Schools, colleges and anganwadi centres have been shut in these districts.
According to the weather office, Titli cyclone formed over the Bay of Bengal and intensified into a severe cyclonic storm. It said that the 24 to 36 hours are very crucial for the coastal areas. Meanwhile, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday evening chaired a high-level meeting to review the preparedness in view of the Title cyclone.
ALSO READ: Cyclone Titli uproots trees, electric poles; disrupts train services
Highlights
With cyclone Titli damaging railway structures at many places, East Coast Railway (ECoR) Thursday cancelled at least six trains and rescheduled some others besides gearing up to restore normal services. After making landfall near Palasa in Andhra Pradesh, very severe cyclone Titli caused extensive damage to station buildings, platform shelters and foot overbridge at various places, an ECoR spokesman said as per PTI.
North-east districts of Jharkhand have been affected due to #TitliCyclone. Rain will continue in places around Ranchi till tomorrow: BK Mandal, Director, IMD, Ranchi, Jharkhand told ANI
Since there was a warning about Titli,we identified vulnerable areas andshifted people to our shelters.We have number of multi-purpose cyclone shelters across the state&we shifted people in over 1100 shelters. It was an elaborate operation: B Sethi,Special Relief Commissioner (Odisha) told ANI
Immediately after landfall, it was 140-150 kmph. Gradually, it was weakening. Now it will come down to 50-60 kmph. It'll prevail till evening today&may be for sometime after night: Srinivas, Duty Officer, Visakhapatnam Cyclone Warning Centre told ANI on Cyclone Titli.
As many as eight districts of Odisha -Khurdha, Ganjam, Jagatsinghpur, Puri, Bhadrak and Balasore have been affected by severe cyclonic storm, whhich led to heavy to very heavy rainfall in large parts of the state, damaging a number of thatched and asbestos houses as also street lights. As per Home Ministry statement, cyclone crossed the north Andhra Pradesh-south Odisha coast near Palasa in Srikakulam district to the southwest of Gopalpur with estimated maximum sustained surface wind speed of 140-150 kmph gusting to 165 kmph between 430 hours and 0530 hours, PTI reported
Cyclone Titli did not much effect in West Bengal after its landfall earlier in the day. However, southern districts in the state may receive heavy to very heavy rain as it is may turn towards Gangetic West Bengal, officials told PTI. The cyclone to move northwestwards till evening and then recurve northeastwards towards Gangetic West Bengal, slowly weakening in a deep depression by Friday morning, the weatherman said as per the agency.
8 people have died in Srikakulam and Vijayanagaram districts due to Cyclone Titli. Power supply and communication systems are affected in both districts. Coastal villages are cut off from the mainland as the roads are damaged.
Close to three lakh people have been evacuated in Odisha along the eastern coast as Cyclone Titli made a landfall earlier in the day. the Home Ministry has said. As many as Eight districts of Odisha -- Ganjam, Khurdha, Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Gajapati Kendrapara, Bhadrak and Balasore have been hit by the storm which caused heavy rainfall in large parts of the state, damaging a number of thatched and asbestos houses and street lights, PTI reported.
Titli cyclone has left two persons dead besides causing widespread damage in Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh. State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) said that trees and electric police were uprooted in Srikakulam district. The SDMA has set up a toll-free telephone number 18004250101 to allow people to contact them directly.
Odisha Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi said that students' union poll across the state scheduled for October 11 has been cancelled. Also, the holidays of officials have been put on hold.
Odisha's Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare minister SN Patro informed that there are sufficient food materials in the state. He made this statement after reports emerged that people are in a panic mode and are buying food items in an indiscriminate manner.
The Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee has opened a 24-hour emergency cell to help the people affected by the Title cyclone. Party’s state unit president Niranjan Patnaik on Wednesday released mobile numbers to enable affected people to contact directly for help. The numbers are: 7609852131, 8895203001, 9861011962, 7008799364, 9348161633, 8847858020, 9937948868 and 9237010939
Amid heightened Durga Puja preparations across West Bengal, the IMD has predicted heavy to very heavy rainfall for Kolkata and Howrah on Friday and Saturday. However, it said that clouds are likely to clear out from October 14, meaning the weather will be good on the last five days of Durga Puja.
The Odisha government declared it has achieved 'Mission Zero Casualty'. On Wednesday, CM Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had directed officials to take effective measures to prevent any loss of human life due to Titli cyclone. “There has been no report of any deaths (due to the cyclone) so far. Mission Zero Casualty has been achieved,” Special Relief Commissioner Bishnupada Sethi said.
According to News18, 2 deaths have been reported from Andhra Pradesh due to Title cyclone. The northern areas of the state have also come under the influence of Titli cyclone that hit Gopalpur of Odisha today morning.
Senior BJP Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan who hails from Odisha said that government and authorities are on alert. "It is the need of the hour for everyone to come forward. I am confident that this crisis will be handled in a proper way with everyone's support."
A fishing boat with 5 fishermen onboard capsized in Odisha's Gopalpur. All five have been rescued by one of the three disaster and rescue teams operating in the region.
14 NDRF teams have been deployed in Odisha to deal with the situation. The districts where NDRF personnel have been stationed are- Balasore, Sambhalpur, Gajapati, Nayagarh, Puri, Jajpur, Kendrapara, Bhadrak, Jagatsinghpur, Ganjam and Bhubaneswar. Also, 4 NDRF teams have been deployed in Andhra Pradesh's Visakhapatnam, Srikakulum and Vijaynagram.
Chairman of RRB Bhubaneswar informed that the RRB exams that were to be held on 11th and 12th, will not be held in any of the centres under the jurisdiction of RRB Bhubaneswar -- Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Dhenkanal, Sambalpur, Khurda and Berhamapur. The new dates will be announced later and aspirants will be informed on their registered mobile numbers and email addresses.
At several locations in the low lying areas of Odisha, Titli cyclone has damaged mud huts, uprooted trees and electric poles. According to IMD, the storm is likely to cross the region by noon. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE
In northern Andhra Pradesh, heavy rainfall have started in lashing many areas. Skymet reported that Kalingapatnam which is close to the Odisha border, has recorded a whopping 90 mm of rainfall.
Several mud houses, trees and electric poles have been uprooted in the coastal districts of Odisha. The 5 coastal districts are receiving heavy rainfall since morning. In Balasore, the officials have recorded 117 mm rainfall so far, 111mm in Paradip.
In Gopalpur where the Titli cyclone has hit, has recorded 97 mm of rain so far. Skymet said that the region will receive more rainfall. The cyclone Titli is epected to cross the Odisha cost by afternoon. The current surface wind speed in Gopalpur is 126 kmph.
Private weather agency Skymet reported that Digha in West Bengal has recorded a whopping 142 mm of rain because of Titli cyclone.
The Indigo airlines has cancelled 5 flights from Biju Patnaik International Airport. The outgoing cancelled flights include two for Delhi, one each for Kolkata, Bengaluru and Mumbai. The incoming flights from these destinations have also been cancelled.
According to a PTI report, the five coastal districts in Odisha -- Ganjam, Gajapati, Puri, Khurda and Jagatsinghpur are receiving good amount of rainfall. The downpur are coupled with high speed winds.
Several West Bengal districts have also come under the impact of Titli cyclone. The districts that are hit by the cyclonic storm are East and West Midnapore, Jhargram, South and North 24 Parganas. The Met department has said that these districts are likely to experience squally wind.
The East Coast Railway (ECoR) has suspended train services between Khurda Road in Odisha and Vizianagaram in Andhra Pradesh due to Title cyclone. The ECoR said that to and fro trains between Khurda Road and Vizianagaram were suspended after 10 pm yesterday till further orders. The railways have also cancelled 5 trains, diverted 15 and terminated 3 trains.
Trains from Howrah/Kharagpur side will also not be allowed from Bhadrak till further notice. The ECoR said that long-distance trains between Khurda Road and Vizianagaram on the Howrah-Chennai main line may be diverted via Nagpur-Balharshah-Vijayawada route.
The IMD has asked fishermen not to venture into the sea water along and off west Bengal coast, Odisha coast till October 13.
IMD official Umashankar Das said that heavy rainfall is expected. He informed that port warning is highest at 10. The maximum speed will be 150 km/hour. According to ANI, Titli cyclone is currently moving at a speed of 140-150 km per hour. In Odisha's Gopalpur, the surface wind speed is 102 km per hour and 56 km per hour in Andhra Pradesh's Kalingapatnam.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday evening chaired a high-level meet to review the preparedness to deal with the situation. He directed the collectors of five districts to ensure 'zero casualty'.
The IMD has predicted that several districts of Odisha will receive heavy to very heavy rainfall today and tomorrow. The districts are Ganjam, Gajapati, Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Khurda, Nayagarh, Cuttack, Jajpur, Bhadrak, Balasore, Kandhamal, Boudh and Dhenkanal.
Titli Cyclone made landfall in Gopalpur region at 5:30 am. More than 10,000 people from low lying areas had been shifted to government shelters.
Districts like Ganjam, Gajapati, Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Khurda, Nayagarh, Cuttack, Jajpur, Bhadrak and Balasore are likely to receive heavy to very heavy rainfall till Thursday, the IMD said. Storm surge of height of about 1 metre above astronomical tide is very likely to inundate the low-lying areas of Ganjam, Khurda and Puri districts
Very severe cyclonic storm Titli makes landfall near Gopalpur in Odisha: IMD