The very severe cyclonic storm Yaas pounded the coastal districts of Odisha and West Bengal on Wednesday. After making a landfall at the north of Dhamra port in Odisha’s Bhadrak district with a wind speed of 130 kmph to 145 kmph at around 9 am, the cyclone caused heavy rainfall and severe storm surge for about four hours.
The storm affected nearly one crore people in West Bengal and damaged three lakh houses, said Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee adding that one person “accidentally” died during the storm. As for Odisha, although locals said that three persons died, one each in Keonjhar, Balasore, and Mayurbhsnj, so far there has not been any official confirmation.
Also read — 1 crore people affected, 3 lakh houses damaged due to cyclone Yaas, says Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee
Seawater rushed into the coastal town of Digha in East Medinipur district almost inundating it completely. The state government called in the Army for rescue operations. Other coastal towns such as Mandarmani, Tajpur, and Shankarpur also experienced severe inundation with seawater flooding hotels, roads, and damaging shops and kutcha houses.
The cyclone raked havoc in South 24 Paraganas district where severe flooding took place in areas such as Fraserganj, Maipith, Gosaba, and Kakdwip in the Sundarban region. The seawater rushed in with such force in Fraserganj that it easily toppled a payloader on the street. In some areas, the waves even touched the top of coconut trees. The surging seawater along with gale wind damaged thousands of kutcha houses, rendering lakhs of villagers homeless.
Several areas in Sagar Island located at the confluence of the river Hooghly and the Bay of Bengal in the South 24 Paraganas district were also flooded.
“West Bengal has been the most affected state. The state government has evacuated 15,04,506 people in Bengal. So far 134 embankments have been breached in Bengal. We have sent relief materials worth about Rs 10 crore to the affected areas,” Mamata said. She also said that she will soon be conducting an aerial survey of affected areas in North and South 24 Paraganas and East Medinipur districts.
Rivers in the delta region swelled due to the rise in water level caused by the storm surge and astronomical high tide.
The seawater flooded scores of villages in Odisha’s Balasore district. Special Relief Commissioner Pradeep Jena said that the affected villages are located in Balasore district’s Remuna and Bahanaga blocks and Bhadrak district’s Dhamra and Basudevpur.
Jena said that one person was injured in the Balasore district after a tree fell on him. The Odisha government has evacuated 5.8 lakh people to shelters.
“It is likely to move northeastwards and weaken gradually into a deep depression cyclonic storm during the next three hours,” the IMD stated in a bulletin issued at 7.30 pm.
The Army, NDRF, and SDRF along with State Police were pressed into service for rescue operations in Odisha and Bengal.
Several districts in West Bengal and Odisha are expected to face heavy to very heavy rainfall. A high alert has been issued in Jharkhand which would be hit by the cyclone at around midnight.