2 min readSrikakulamOct 14, 2013 02:41 AM IST
First published on: Oct 14, 2013 at 02:41 AM IST
Saturday night’s fear turned to joy on Sunday morning,as Cyclone Phailin,which hit the north Andhra coast,did not cause any deaths or largescale devastation. Over one lakh people,who were evacuated from the coastal villages in Srikakulam,Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam,hurried back to their homes at dawn,as the sun rose in a cloudless sky,just in time to celebrate the Dussehra festival.
And when power supply was restored in phases,from 10 am Sunday,life began to return to normal. Except for some cattle,and damage to standing crops,there were no human casualties in the state. The deaths of two persons,including a 62-year-old man in Srikakulam district,were attributed to natural causes.
Even Kalingapatnam mandal of Srikakulam district,which is just 168 kms from Gopalpur in Orissa,escaped any largescale devastation. Revenue and Relief Minister N Raghuveera Reddy said five mandals of Srikakulam district were in the path of the cyclone,but escaped any serious destruction,apart from uprooted trees and power lines.
National Disaster Response Force NDRF teams,armed with electric saws powered by mobile diesel gensets,cleared away fallen trees,and electricity and telecommunication poles in the affected areas. Mobile phone connectivity was restored and traffic on the main Chennai-Kolkata NH 5 returned to normal.
The heavy rainfall overnight left rivers and streams in spate,inundating agricultural land on key roads in several areas. After making landfall in Orissa,the cyclone lost its intensity on the Andhra side. By 3 am,there was no wind,although it continued to rain till 5 am. Disaster Management Commissioner T Radha said there was heavy rainfall in Sompeta,Ichapuram and Kaveti in Srikakulam,which caused the rivers and streams to swell.
Greeting the people on the occasion of Dussehra,Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy said the priority now is relief and rehabilitation. He assured farmers that the damage caused to their crops would be assessed and adequate compensation given. Fishermen who have not able to go to the sea will get 10 kgs of rice per family along with other essential commodities.
The East Coast Railway and South Central Railway,which had either cancelled or diverted trains,have resumed normal services.
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