A powerful cyclone has ripped through India's east coast, killing at least five people and forcing more than half a million into shelters.
Cyclone Phailin, with winds up to 130mph, made landfall on Saturday night near the town of Golpalpur in Orissa state and is moving inland.
The storm, covering an area larger than France, lost some of its strength before hitting the coast, but it remains India's strongest since a typhoon killed 10,000 people in the same region 14 years ago.
Four people were killed by falling trees, while another died when the walls of her home collapsed.
Officials said the storm has already caused cause large-scale power and communications outages and shut down road and rail links.
A satellite image of the cyclone The evacuation of around 450,000 people in Orissa and 100,000 in Andhra Pradesh state is one of the biggest exercises in the country's history.
Many people have fled low-lying villages for shelters, but others have refused to leave their homes.
"My son had to stay back with his wife because of the cattle and belongings ... I don't know if they are safe," said 70-year-old Kaushalya Jena, who has taken refuge in a makeshift shelter.
In Bhubaneshwar, the capital of Orissa, government workers and volunteers have been putting together hundreds of thousands of food packages for relief camps.
The state's top official, chief minister Naveen Patnaik, said: "I request everyone to not panic. Please assist the government. Everyone from the village to the state headquarters have been put on alert."
Floods have already ripped down power lines The army's National Disaster Response Force said 1,700 of its troops have been sent to both states.
"As soon as the fury of the cyclone abates our boys will start their work," said the force's director general Krishna Chaudhary.
"The teams have medical first responders (for first aid), heavy cutting equipment, life-saving equipment that responds to breathing and even to warmth. In the case of cyclones there is a likelihood of collapsed buildings."
While the full extent of the damage cannot yet be measured, India's meteorological department said the cyclone posed a danger to a 95-miles stretch of coastline.
Forecasters have likened its size and intensity to Hurricane Katrina, which devastated the US Gulf coast and New Orleans in 2005.
Dr Liz Bentley from the Royal Meteorological Society told Sky News: "This particular part of the coastline is very low-lying so it (Phailin) will penetrate quite well in land.
"It is like a mini-tsunami hitting that - not caused in the same way as a tsunami but it's the same effect."
Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang
Cyclone Phailin Slams Into India's East Coast
Dengan url
http://tampolantelak.blogspot.com/2013/10/cyclone-phailin-slams-into-indias-east.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
Cyclone Phailin Slams Into India's East Coast
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
Cyclone Phailin Slams Into India's East Coast
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar