Cyclone devastates Orissa

“The devastation is beyond imagination. More than 200,000 houses have been destroyed and vast tracts in the coastal areas submerged,” he said.

All the 10 affected districts remained cut off from rest of the country. “I have never seen Bhubaneswar and Cuttack cut off from the rest of the country in my life,” he said.

Gamang spoke to Prime Minister A B Vajpayee and urged him todeclare the calamity a national disaster. The Chief Minister also urged Vajpayee to immediately release Rs 500 crore for carrying out rescue, relief and restoration work. In a statement, President K R Narayanan has expressed grief over the widespread devastation. “The loss of life and property sustained in coastal Orissa and in Paradeep Port in particular is a matter of deep sorrow,” he said.

Union Home Minister L K Advani announced in the Lok Sabha tonight that the armed forces have launched “Operation Help” for the millions affected in the coastal areas of Orissa and adjoining states. He said the Government has directed all agencies concerned to undertake relief operations on a war footing and the armed forces would drop dry ration tomorrow morning. The Indian Railways have also decided to transport rations for the affected persons free of cost, he added.

About 2,000 Army personnel have reached Bhubaneswar and Balasore to assist in the rescue and relief operations. The troops, mobilised from Ranchiand Calcutta, include eight columns of infantry, five from the Corps of Engineers, Field Ambulance Units and Signals to restore the communication system, an Army spokesman said in New Delhi.

According to initial reports, more than a lakh houses had been damaged in the cyclone which struck between 10.30 am and 12.30 pm, said Advani. He said the Union Cabinet would meet tomorrow to assess the losses and take urgent steps for providing relief.

Advani said telecom, electricity and other essential services had been affected badly. Cuttack, Bhubaneshwar and other cities were left without power supply.

Gamang requested both Vajpayee and Defence Minister George Fernandes to airlift 200,000 tarpaulins, huge quantity of food articles, diesel and kerosene from Delhi to the state capital. He also requested them to send a central team to the state tomorrow to study the situation. The Chief Minister also appealed to the international community and business houses to help the state tide over the crisis.

Advani andFernandes will make an aerial survey of the cyclone-battered areas of Orissa tomorrow. The national crisis management committee, headed by the Cabinet Secretary, met in Delhi today to assess the situation and directed Central Government agencies to immediately rush relief to the affected areas.

Though West Bengal was spared the fury of the storm as it veered off course, a report from Midnapore in West Bengal said at least 200 fishermen were feared killed in the Bay of Bengal. A spokesman of the Digha Mohana Committee, an organisation of fishermen, told UNI that the 200 fishermen had left for the sea in 10 trawlers three days ago but were yet to be traced. “We have lost all communication with them and we fear they are dead,” the spokesman said.

There seemed to be confusion in the administration over this report. District Magistrate M V Rao confirmed that the fishermen were missing and that the Coast Guard from Haldia was trying to launch a search operation to trace them.

But according to an agencyreport, the Additional District Magistrate of Midnapore, R R Deb, said only 11 fishermen who had gone out to sea in three country boats last night were reported missing. Inspector General of Police (Law and Order) Prasun Mukherjee too said that his office “did not have any information regarding such a huge number of people missing.”

However, at least 200 people were injured, 25 of them seriously, and more than 100 houses destroyed in 11 villages of Midnapore district.

Vast areas of Cuttack and Bhubaneswar were submerged following continuous rain since early morning. Train services on the South Eastern Railway’s Howrah-Chennai main line were severely disrupted. The cyclone caused widespread damage to railway signalling, power supply and telecommunications.A spokesperson of the South Eastern Railway said in Calcutta that the cyclone had battered railway signalling, telecommunication and power supply at railway stations between Puri and Khurda Road, Paradip and Cuttack and Balugaon and Bhadrakstations.

Tracks are blocked by uprooted trees, signal posts and electric masts at several places, totally disrupting train services between Kharagpur and Khurda Road on the east coast route, he added. Following this, a number of trains were either cancelled, diverted, terminated or rescheduled.

Hundreds of thousands of houses collapsed in the coastal areas under the impact of the cyclone which, many old timers say, was unprecedented. The homeless people couldn’t find any place of refuge as sea waves rising up to 30 ft flooded areas far beyond the coastline.

The storm first hit Paradip in Jagatsinghpur district and then lashed other districts along the coast. Puri, Kendrapara, Khurda and Jagatsinghpur were the worst affected by the cyclone which is the second in a fortnight. The first on the night of October 17 had devastated Ganjam district and claimed 145 lives in the state.

Houses and power and telecom installations were damaged in Kendrapara, Bhadrak, Balasore, Keonjhar, Jajpur and Mayurbhanjdistricts.

At least two people were killed in Paradip due to house collapse following heavy rain and strong winds. Revenue Minister Jagannath Patnaik said at least 2000 houses in the port area have been damaged.

Bhubaneswar wore a ghastly look. With gales blowing at over 150 km per hour velocity and heavy rain lashing the capital, normal life was thrown out of gear. Hundreds of trees got uprooted and were blocking most of the state highways and roads and there was virtually no traffic on the city roads. Nearly 600 families were reportedly rendered homeless and seven persons seriously injured due to house collapse. Snapped telephone and electricity wires, hoardings, and canopies were on the roads.

Shops and business establishments were closed and the Bhubaneswar Stock Exchange stopped functioning. Several big business establishments and hotel buildings were damaged due to falling of huge trees.

There was a sense of relief among the people and the administration in the coastal areas of West Bengal andthe cyclone changed its course and did not unleash its full fury as feared earlier. There were, however, reports of house collapses and injuries from the Contai sub-division in Midnapore district.

Speaking to reporters, IG (Law & Order) of West Bengal Police Prasun Mukherjee said in Chandipur in Midnapore district four villages were seriously affected. Over 30 had been injured, three seriously, in Birampur, Chalkpurulia, Majilkali and Jalpai.

The state government has evacuated 45,000 people in the Sagar and Goramarah islands in South 24-Parganas which was earlier on the route of the cyclone.