Cyclone Tauktae: Winds with speed up to 185 kilometres per hour can hit Gujarat.
"Extremely severe" Cyclone Tauktae will make landfall in Gujarat tonight, unleashing devastatingly rapid winds. Around 100 disaster response teams - 45 in Gujarat alone - have been deployed to deal with the fallout of the storm.Here are the top 10 updates on Cyclone Tauktae:
The India Meteorological Department has predicted Cyclone Tauktae is expected to cross the Gujarat coast between Porbandar and Mahuva between 8 pm to 11.30 pm. It can cause heavy to very heavy rainfall in isolated parts of the state. Extremely powerful winds with speed up to 185 kilometres per hour - enough to uproot trees and electricity poles - are expected to hit the state.
The Gujarat government has shifted over a lakh people living in coastal areas to safer places after the IMD issued warnings of tidal waves and flooding. Several places in 21 districts received light rainfall due to the cyclone. Six talukas received over one inch of rainfall, the government said. The weather office has warned that extremely heavy downpour over the southern districts of Saurashtra, Diu and Gujarat region is expected on Monday and Tuesday.
The Gujarat government has deployed teams from several departments to provide rescue and relief. Special arrangements have been made in hospitals treating COVID-19 patients to ensure electricity backup, the government said. Hundreds of ambulances have been kept on standby to shift patients in case of emergency, news agency PTI reported.
Maharashtra has also evacuated thousands of people living in coastal areas to safety. Covid patients have also been moved to make-shift facilities. Cyclone Tauktae, which was at a distance of around 150 km from the state coast this morning, has triggered strong winds with speed of 114 kilometres per hour in Mumbai. The city is also witnessing high tides with height upto 3.95 metres. Prime Minister Narendra Modi today dialled up Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to take stock of the situation.
In Mumbai, flight operations at the city's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport have been halted till 6 pm. The Bandra-Worli sea-link has been closed for traffic because of strong winds, which have caused damage to several structures in the city. Several isolated places in Maharashtra, including Mumbai, are receiving intense rainfall.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked for least disruption in oxygen supply from Gujarat's Jamnagar - the site of a Reliance Industries' refinery that is currently India's largest single-location medical oxygen provider. Oxygen supply is of critical importance with lakhs of Covid patients on life support. Reliance has said it is working to ensure supply but warned it may be forced to shut down for a few hours.
National Disaster Response Force chief SN Pradhan told NDTV that doctors and medical staff have also been sent to the affected districts along with the 100 response teams. Only Covid-vaccinated personnel have been deployed, he added. The team are also carrying machines to cut through fallen trees. In cyclone shelters, social distancing and other anti-Covid rules are being enforced.
The Air Force has deployed two C-130J and an An-32 aircraft to transport 167 NDRF personnel and 16.5 tonnes of equipment from Kolkata to Ahmedabad. The Navy is on standby in Gujarat and was engaged in search and rescue ops in Kerala on Sunday.
A barge with 273 people onboard has gone adrift off the Heera oil fields in the Bombay High area. Navy warship INS Kochi has been sent to help.
The cyclone caused massive damage in Goa on Saturday, damaging houses and electric lines. In Karnataka, six people have been killed so far, and 121 villages and 22 taluks have been affected by the cyclone.
With inputs from PTI
