Cyclone Tauktae Highlights: 26 dead, over 50 missing after barge sinks into Arabian Sea; toll touches 46 in Gujarat

In over 24 hours between Sunday and Monday, 812 trees were uprooted as extremely severe cyclone Tauktae brushed past the city. An inspection of the uprooted trees has revealed that 70 per cent of those were non-native species, including Gulmohar, rain tree and royal palm among others.

Last year, 323 trees fell between June 3 and June 6, in the aftermath of cyclone Nisarga that hit Raigad district.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Wednesday stressed its existing policy of planting native species trees and said an updated list of native tree species will be issued for citizens and private organisations to follow during plantation drives. More details here. 

Indian Naval ships and aircraft are presently undertaking search and rescue operations of the missing crew members of accommodation barge P-305, which sank on May 17.

#Watch: Indian Naval ships and aircraft are presently undertaking search and rescue operations of the missing crew members of accommodation barge P-305, which sank on May 17. #CycloneTauktae pic.twitter.com/D1BVgSri82

— The Indian Express (@IndianExpress) May 19, 2021

Battling tidal waves as high as 15 metres and strong winds while trying to stay afloat in the cyclone-hit rough Arabian Sea for almost 12 hours, workmen rescued from a sinking barge narrated their horrifying experience in their quest for survival.

One of the survivors said the incident was similar to the scenes from the movie 'Titanic' that depicted the sinking of the RMS Titanic ship in 1912 in the North Atlantic Ocean, while some others said that they had almost lost the hope of making it alive back home.

"People might have watched in 'Titanic' movie the occupants jumping out of the sinking ship to save themselves and dead bodies floating, but we saw all this unfold before our eyes," Vishwajeet Bandgar (28), who worked on the barge as a welder, said after his rescue by the Navy.

"It was worse than the Titanic, as dead bodies of our colleagues, who worked with us, could be seen floating in the water," he said. (PTI)

*According to the Indian Navy, as of now, 186 crew members of barge P-305 and two from another tug ‘Varaprada’ have been rescued. A total of 26 mortal remains of the crew of barge P305 have been recovered so far.

*Search and rescue operations entered their third day today. INS Kochi, Kolkata, Beas, Betwa, Teg, P8I maritime surveillance aircraft, Chetak, ALH and Seaking helicopters are involved in the SAR operations.

*INS Kochi entered harbour today to disembark 125 survivors and mortal remains of four crew members and was immediately sailed out in the evening again to continue the search mission.

*INS Kolkata is scheduled to enter Mumbai harbour tonight to disembark the survivors rescued from barge P-305 and Varaprada, as well as the mortal remains of 18 crew members recovered during the operation.

*On completion of its operations off Gujarat coast, INS Talwar has also been diverted to conjoin the other three naval ships searching for the missing crew of barge P-305. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday announced financial assistance of Rs 1,000 crore for immediate relief measures in the areas hit by cyclone Tauktae in Gujarat. 

The prime minister also announced Rs 2 lakh ex-gratia compensation for the kin of the deceased and Rs 50,000 for those injured in cyclone-related incidents in all states affected by Tauktae, news agency PTI reported citing an official press release.

The decision was taken during the review meeting in Ahmedabad with Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and top officials to assess the damage caused by the cyclone.

???'?? ?????????? ???????? ???????? ??????????? ????? ???????? ???? ???????? ??? ?????? ????????????? @narendramodi ?? ?????? ????????? ???? ??????? ???? ???? ??. 1000 ?????? ???? ??????? ???????? ??. 2 ????? ??????? ?????? ??????? ???? ??? ????? ?????? ??? ????? ??? ??? ????. pic.twitter.com/s5aLQ2cX56

— Vijay Rupani (@vijayrupanibjp) May 19, 2021

In less than a week, another cyclone is headed towards India, this time along its east coast.

It was on May 17 that ‘Extremely Severe Cyclone’ Tauktae hit southern Gujarat and its remnants continue to head towards the plains of north India. 

Officials at the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Wednesday afternoon said that a low-pressure system could take birth within the next 48 hours and it holds a potential to intensify into a cyclone. More details here. 

People rescued from barge P305 that went adrift in Cyclone Tauktae fury before sinking in the Arabian Sea.

Officials on Wednesday said that as many as 45 people have been killed due to the cyclone across 12 districts of Gujarat. Fifteen deaths were reported from Amreli district in Saurashtra region, the worst affected in the cyclone that crossed the state coast as an extremely severe cyclonic storm on Monday night and completed landfall around 1.30 am Tuesday, PTI reported. 

At least 22 personnel onboard barge P305 that went adrift in Cyclone Tauktae fury before sinking in the Arabian Sea are dead, news agency PTI reported citing Navy officials. Over 60 people are still missing while at least 180 people have been rescued. The barge sank on Monday at 7 pm.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi conducts an aerial survey of Una, Dio, Jafarabad and Mahuva after Cyclone Tauktae. Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani accompanied him. (Pictures via ANI)

The Coast Guard, which regularly provides assistance to vessels in distress, had clearly warned the Oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC) and also the Flag Officer, Offshore Defence Advisory Group (FODAG), that all ships should come back to the harbour in the wake of Cyclone Tauktae. Inspector General Anand Badola, the Commandant General of Coast Guard (West), said they had asked ONGC and FODAG to remove all vessels from the sea. "Why the ONGC did not follow the intimation is a question it has to answer," he added.

Badola said they ensured that 4,221 fishing boats had entered the harbour before the cyclone made its way to the Mumbai coast. Read Yogesh Naik's report

Commodore Manoj Jha, in charge of operations, said two survivors of tug Vara Prabha were picked by naval ships and taken onboard. "These survivors have told us that the tug has sunk and we are looking out for her," Jha said. 

Indian Navy Commodore Manoj Jha Wednesday said 14 bodies had been recovered from the Arabian Sea, two days after a vessel which went adrift during Cyclone Tauktae sank. 

The system has weakened into a depression over south Rajasthan and adjoining Gujarat, and lies about 30 km south-southwest of Udaipur and 170 km east-northeast of Deesa in Gujarat. It is likely to gradually weaken into a well-marked low pressure area in the next 12 hours. The remnant of the system is very likely to move further northeastwards across Rajasthan to Uttar Pradesh during the next two days, the IMD said. 

The personnel rescued from Barge P305 were brought to Mumbai by INS Kochi and INS Kolkata this morning. The Navy, in a statement, said: "INS Teg, INS Betwa, INS Beas, P8I aircraft and Seaking helicopters are continuing with the search and rescue operations."

#CycloneTauktae #Update#INSKochi entering Mumbai harbour today morning alongwith rescued personnel from Barge P305.
INS Teg, INS Betwa, INS Beas P8I aircraft & Seaking Helos continuing with Search & Rescue Ops.@indiannavy @SpokespersonMoD @DDNewslive @PIB_India @airnewsalerts pic.twitter.com/jkBY5DnJeI

— PRO Defence Mumbai (@DefPROMumbai) May 19, 2021

 The Indian Navy and Coast Guard are involved in one of the biggest off-short search and rescue operations after Cyclone Tauktae (pronounced Tau’te) battered an oil rig and left three vessels adrift in the Arabian Sea. On Wednesday, the Navy confirmed all 101 workers on Sagar Bhushan, the oil rig, had been rescued. The 137 men on Gal Constructor, which ran aground near Palghar, had also been rescued. The 196 men on SS03, which is still adrift, are safe and a tug boat has been sent to tow her to safety.

The focus has turned to Barge P305, which sank on Monday, from which 184 of the 273 people onboard have been rescued. The other men, 89 in number, are missing. Search and rescue operations will continue for the next three days.

Many of the 137 people who were on board the ill-fated Gal Constructor barge ship and were rescued said they had given up hope of escaping alive and “stared at death” as their barge nearly hit an oil rig. Some even called their families to say their final goodbyes.

Anand Menon, 45, deck foreman of Gal constructor, who has been on barges since 1994, said, “I have seen several cyclones while on ships but all of them passed in two to four hours. This was the first time that a cyclone was so powerful and lasted for several hours. We had lowered four anchors, each weighing over seven tonnes, but the cyclone was so strong that all of them got ripped within minutes and we started drifting away. We had eight anchors on the barge but there was not enough space to lower all anchors as there are pipes below the sea that could have got damaged.” Jayprakash S Naidu reports

As Tauktae made landfall between 8 pm and 11 am near Una in neighbouring Gir Somnath district, wind started gusting up to 185 km per hour and it rained heavily. Vijapadi residents said they tried to weather the storm but situation the spiralled out of control just past midnight.

Vijapadi is among the largest villages in Amreli with population of around 12,000. But most of houses are kuccha houses and not a single one of them was spared by the cyclone. Dozens of residents shifted to a high school in the village and a madarsa amid the storm and in the dark of the night as power supply was disrupted the previous afternoon. Read Gopal B Kateshiya's report

Cyclone Tauktae weakened into a depression this morning, but is likely to bring rains to several states, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said. Gujarat, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi are likely to receive rains. "The remnant of the system is very likely to move further north eastwards across Rajasthan to west Uttar Pradesh during the next two days," the IMD said.

After four long overcast days days under influence of #CycloneTauktae, the sun is finally out today in Saurashtra @IndianExpress @ExpressGujarat pic.twitter.com/605v91FngU

— Gopal Kateshiya (@gopalreports) May 19, 2021

According to the records of the India Meteorological Department’s (IMD) Cyclone E-Atlas – a repository that tracks tropical cyclones and weather depressions over the north Indian Ocean since 1891 – Cyclone Tauktae is also most likely the first extremely severe cyclone with gusting wind speeds of 200 kmph to reach close to the Mumbai coast in the last 130 years.

Researchers at Indian Institute Of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) in Pune have been analysing cyclone landfall data for Maharashtra and the west coast since 1891, when authorities officially began recording cyclone formations. "It is for the first time after 1976 and only the second time since 1900 that a cyclone, which formed in May – pre-monsoon period – has hit Gujarat coast with wind speed greater than 35 knots (65 kmph)," said Vineet Kumar Singh, a researcher. Read Sanjana Bhalerao's report

As the cyclonic storm Tauktae lay centred over Saurashtra, about 45 km north-northwest of Ahmedabad on Tuesday evening with an intensity of 55-65 kmph gusting to 75 kmph near the centre, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an alert of heavy rainfall across Gujarat on Wednesday.

Heavy to very heavy rain very likely in Sabarkantha, Dang, Surat, Navsari, Valsad, Daman, Dadara & Nagar Haveli, Surendranagar, Rajkot Morbi, Bhavnagar, Amreli, Junagadh, Botad, Jamnagar, Aravalli, Banaskantha, Patan, Mehsana, Gandhinagar, Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Kheda and Anand, the IMD bulletin stated. Read more here

Pakistan's biggest city Karachi was hit by gusty winds and a dust storm on Tuesday under the influence of Tauktae cyclone in the region which left four people dead.

Rescue officials in Pakistan confirmed that at least four people were killed in roof collapse incidents after Karachi was hit by a dust storm followed by light rain in many parts of the city.

"The dust storm was caused due to the influence of the cyclone system being in southern Pakistan's vicinity combined with local weather conditions," a met official said. PTI

The Gujarat government has ordered a survey of damage to crops and horticulture reported from across the state after cyclone Tauktae flattened mango orchards and banana plantations and damaged coconut palms.

“The summer crop was completely damaged and horticulturists have also clocked phenomenal losses. The path that cyclone took is a hub of kesar mango growers. The mangoes that were ready for harvest in the next few weeks have fallen in the high-velocity winds and trees have been badly damaged or have got uprooted. Similarly, coconut palm growers in the coastal regions saw massive damage,” said Sagar Rabari, head of Khedut Ekta Manch. More details here.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Gujarat and Diu tomorrow, to review the situation and damage caused due to Cyclone Tauktae, ANI reported. The prime minister will conduct an aerial survey of areas including Una, Diu, Jafarabad, and Mahuva. He will also hold a review meeting in Ahmedabad later.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Gujarat and Diu tomorrow, to review the situation & damage due to #CycloneTauktae. He will conduct an aerial survey of areas such as Una, Diu, Jafarabad, and Mahuva. He will also hold a review meeting in Ahmedabad later. pic.twitter.com/sYH9MRIAk2

— ANI (@ANI) May 18, 2021

Cyclone Tauktae claimed at least 13 lives and left a trail of destruction in the Saurashtra region after it made landfall near Una in Gir Somnath district Monday, bringing along with it very strong winds and heavy rainfall that damaged nearly 16,500 houses and uprooted over 40,000 trees.

Power outages were reported from 5951 villages, including 52 Covid-19 hospitals and 13 oxygen plants, while damage to 196 roads was also reported from across the region. Several rivers in the Saurashtra region are in spate following the heavy rainfall since Monday.

Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, who took stock of the situation from the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) in Gandhinagar, said Tuesday 13 ‘accidental’ deaths have been reported including one each from Vapi, Rajkot and Gariyadhar. More details here.

The ONGC Tuesday in a tweet said that all drifted vessels, except the P-35, are in control and all members of the crew are safe. Near 80 people on board the vessel are still missing. Rescue operations are underway.

All drifted vessels, except ‘P-305’ are taken in control and their crew are safe. @IndianNavy and #ONGC are actively engaged in rescuing crew of vessel ‘P-305’. @PIB_India@ANI@PetroleumMin

— ONGC (@ONGC_) May 18, 2021

On Monday, the Indian Navy and the Coast Guard launched a rescue mission after four vessels went adrift off the Mumbai coast due to inclement weather and heavy rains arising from Cyclone Tautkae. What caused the accident and what is the status of the rescue mission so far? Read our explainer to know more.

Navy vessels, helicopters, tug boats and rescue ships were pressed into service on Monday to evacuate over 500 people stuck on different barges in the high sea off the Mumbai coast after a Cyclone Tauktae ripped through it.

According to the latest information, a total of 182 people on-board Barge P305, which sunk after it went adrift in the Arabian Sea near Mumbai, have been saved. Near 80 people are still missing. Meanwhile, a total of 339 people onboard Gal Constructor and SS-3 are said to be rescued.

Cyclonic storm Tauktae damaged a sea-facing safety wall and iron gates near the iconic Gateway of India here and some jetty stones in the vicinity also got dislodged due to its impact, civic officials said on Tuesday.

The main structure of the historic monument did not suffer any damage, but a portion of the footpath near it caved in, they said.

Huge tidal waves in the Arabian Sea threw heaps of garbage at the monument, which is a major tourist attraction, as the cyclonic storm passed close to the Mumbai coast on Monday, they said. (PTI)

Post landfall Cyclone Tauktae wreaked havoc in Gujarat and Maharashtra.

Post landfall Cyclone Tauktae wreaks havoc in Gujarat and Maharashtra #cyclonetauktae pic.twitter.com/Kn7o9Uh0Is

— The Indian Express (@IndianExpress) May 18, 2021

Battling extreme weather, the Indian Navy along with Coast Guard rescued 185 people on board Barge P305, Coast Guard DG K Natrajan told The Indian Express. The barge had sunk after it went adrift in the Arabian Sea near Mumbai hours before Cyclone Tauktae made landfall on the Gujarat coast.

Meanwhile, a Chetak helicopter operating from Coast Guard Air Enclave Goa rescued two distressed and stranded employee of Light House Authority from Vengrula LightHouse– 38 Nautical miles North of Vasco. The lighthouse had a total power failure and was badly damaged due to high-speed wind and rough weather conditions at sea. (Yogesh Naik reports)

The IMD has forecast moderate to intense spells of rain in Mumbai city and suburbs over the next few hours on Tuesday in the aftermath of cyclone Tauktae, the city civic body said. Along with the rain, the city could witness gusty winds with speed reaching up to 80-90 kmph, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation said quoting the India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast issued at 7 am. According to officials, two people were killed in neighbouring Palghar and one person died in Thane in separate incidents related to the severe cyclonic storm.

Several people were reloacted and trees were uprooted in Gujarat as cyclone Tauktae pounded parts of the state leaving behind a trail of destruction along the western coast. 

As many as 2,364 tree/branch-fall incidents were recorded in Mumbai in 24 hours starting 8 am on Monday as heavy winds reaching up to 114 km/hour swept through the city. Mumbai also received 230 mm rainfall due to the cyclonic storm Tauktae. (With Sanjana Bhalerao)

In its latest update, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said the storm was moving at 11 kmph and over lies over Saurashtra about 200 km Southwest of Ahmedabad, 115 km South-Southwest of Surendranagar and 20 km East-Northeast of Amreli at 10:30 am. 

SEVERE CYCLONIC STORM ‘TAUKTAE’ WEAKENED INTO A CYCLONIC STORM AND LAY CENTRED AT 1130 HRS IST OVER SAURASHTRA, NEAR LAT. 22.0°N AND LONG. 71.5°E, ABOUT 165 KM SOUTHWEST OF AHMEDABAD. TO MOVE NORTH NORTHEASTWARDS AND WEAKEN GRADUALLY INTO A DEEP DEPRESSION IN NEXT 06 HRS. pic.twitter.com/rIPcCNG39I

— India Meteorological Department (@Indiametdept) May 18, 2021

Barge P305, which went adrift in the Arabian Sea near Mumbai hours before Cyclone Tauktae made landfall on the Gujarat coast, has sunk, officials told Indian Express. Navy ships were deployed Monday night to rescue personnel on the barge. So far, the authorities had rescued 177 people on board. (Yogesh Naik reports)

Mumbai received 230 mm rainfall due to the cyclonic storm Tauktae, with a weather expert claiming it to be the highest 24-hour downpour in May in the recorded history. According to the India Meteorological Department's (IMD) Mumbai centre, the Santacruz observatory (representative of suburbs) recorded 230.3 mm rainfall in the 24-hour period ending at 8.30 am on Tuesday.

Remnants of cyclone Tauktae are likely to cause widespread rain over northwest India for the next three days, with moderate to heavy intensity rainfall forecast in Delhi-NCR on Wednesday as per the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

The cyclone is likely to move north-northeastwards from the Gujarat coast and weaken gradually over the next three hours, causing heavy to very heavy rainfall over Rajasthan on Tuesday and Wednesday.

“Remnants of the above system are likely to cause fairly widespread to widespread rainfall/thunderstorms along with isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall over Western Himalayan Region and over adjoining plains of northwest India during May 19-20,” said an IMD forecast.

As weather improved on Tuesday, the Search and Rescue operations by the Indian Navy have rescued a total of 177 persons from Barge P305. The SAR by INS Kochi and INS Kolkata along with MV Offshore Energy and MV Ahalya continue  continues to be in force even under extremely challenging circumstances. A barge went adrift in the Arabia Sea near Mumbai hours before Cyclone Tauktae made landfall on the Gujarat coast on Monday.(With Yogesh Naik)

After Cyclone Tauktae caused landfall in Gujarat on Monday evening, NDRF Chief SN Pradhan said that the state emergency operation centre (SEOC) of Gujarat had informed them and confirmed that there have been no deaths due to the disaster. The statement comes after officials said that at least 4 people have died in the state in cyclone related incidents, PTI reported.

The state emergency operation centre (SEOC) of Gujarat has informed us and confirmed that there have been no deaths at all: NDRF Chief SN Pradhan on #CycloneTauktae pic.twitter.com/4d60mjr01p

— ANI (@ANI) May 18, 2021

As Cyclone Tauktae made its way to the Gujarat coast on Monday, it past through Maharashtra bringing heavy rains in Mumbai and adjoining areas. Mumbai received continious downpour the entire day with wind speech reaching up to 114 kmph.

Four people were killed in Gujarat as cyclone Tauktae pounded parts of the state and left behind a trail of destruction along the western coast, officials said on Tuesday. The landfall process of the eye of the extremely severe cyclonic storm Tauktae, which hit the Gujarat coast in Saurashtra region between Diu and Una, ended around midnight, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.

It crossed the Gujarat coast as an "extremely severe cyclonic storm" and gradually weakened. On Tuesday morning, it lay over the Saurashtra region near Amreli as a "very severe cyclonic storm," the IMD said. Even as the cyclonic intensity weakened, it left behind a trail of destruction, with at least four people losing their lives- one each in Bhavnagar, Rajkot, Patan and Valsad, officials said.

The Search and Rescue operations by the Indian Navy continued throughout the night and a total of 146 persons from Barge P305 have been rescued till 6 am Tuesday -111 by INS Kochi and INS Kolkata, 17 by Offshore Support Vessel (OSV) Greatship Ahilya and 18 by OSV Ocean Energy whilst operating in extremely challenging sea conditions. 

The barge 'Gal Constructor' with 137 persons onboard has run aground about 48 NM North of Colaba Point. An Emergency Towing Vessel 'Water Lily', two support vessels and CGS Samrat are in vicinity for rendering assistance and evacuation of crew.

INS Talwar is proceeding to render assistance to another oil rig Sagar Bhushan with 101 personnel onboard and an accommodation barge SS-3 with 196 personnel onboard, both of which are adrift and presently located about 50 NM South East of Pipavav Port.

These ongoing rescue efforts have been augmented today morning by an Indian Naval P8I surveillance aircraft. Helicopters of Indian Navy will also be deployed for SAR based on weather conditions. The SAR efforts will continue through the day with more naval assets ready to augment the ongoing SAR.

A barge went adrift in the Arabia Sea near Mumbai hours before Cyclone Tauktae made landfall on the Gujarat coast on Monday.

#CycloneTauktae#Update-Search & Rescue Ops.
146 personnel rescued so far from barge P305 which is sunk on site.
Aerial search commenced at first light with #IndianNavy P8I on task. Navy Helos standing by await improving of extreme weather conditions.@DefenceMinIndia

— SpokespersonNavy (@indiannavy) May 18, 2021

A day after making landfall in the Saurashtra region of Gujarat, the storm is xpected to weaken into the ‘Cyclonic Storm’ by afternoon hours of Tuesday and further weaken into a depression by the end of the day,” a senior Met official told The Indian Express. In an early morning tweet on Tuesday, IMD said that the system continues to show a weakening trend as its eye is disorganising and its wall cloud is weakening.

THE CYCLONE CONTINUES TO SHOW WEAKNING TREND. EYE IS DISORGANISING, WALL CLOUD IS WEAKNING.

— India Meteorological Department (@Indiametdept) May 17, 2021

The landfall process of the eye of extremely severe cyclonic storm Tauktae, which hit the Gujarat coast in Saurashtra region between Diu and Una, ended around midnight, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Tuesday. In its latest bulletin, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said the storm was moving at 11 kmph and lay over Saurashtra in Gujarat at 5.30 am, about 95 km north-northeast of Diu and10 km south of Amreli.

VERY SEVERE CYCLONIC STORM ‘TAUKTAE’ WOULD MOVE NORTH-NORTHEAST WARDS AND WEAKEN GRADUALLY INTO A CYCLONIC STORM DURING NEXT 03 HOURS.

— India Meteorological Department (@Indiametdept) May 18, 2021