With wind speed of 100-120 kmph, cyclone Dana to make landfall near Odisha’s Bhitarkanika and Dhamra areas, officials say

The cyclone will also trigger heavy to very heavy rainfall in coastal and northern parts of Odisha, and a total of 14 districts are expected to be affected.

“There are chances of storm surge (above the astronomical tide) resulting in inundation of low-lying areas in Kendrapada, Bhadrak and Balasore districts during the landfall,” said Umashankar Das, scientist at the Bhubaneswar regional centre.

MLA Manas Kumar Dutta interacts with fishermen during inspection of the Bahabalpur Jetty area ahead of cyclone Dana landfall, in Balasore district on Tuesday. (Photo: PTI)

IMD sources said the cyclone may cause major damage to thatched houses and huts, rooftops may blow away, and power and communication lines are likely to be disrupted. It could also uproot trees and affect the standing crops in some areas.

The state has put the government machinery on high alert and started shifting people from vulnerable areas to designated shelters prepared by the administration.

The state’s revenue and disaster management minister Suresh Pujari said around 5,000 shelters and relief centres have been prepared by the administration and instructions have been issued to shift people by Wednesday evening. The government has planned to evacuate around 10 lakh people from low lying areas and vulnerable places.

To assist the local administration, the government has deployed over 20 teams of Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force as well as several fire service personnel. While 20 NDRF teams have already been deployed, five more have been airdropped from Bhatinda in Punjab.