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Cyclone Phailin, the most powerful storm to hit India's eastern coast since 1999, on Saturday struck the Odisha coast, bringing torrential rains and packing wind speeds of over 200 kmph in the state and the neighbouring Andhra Pradesh.
Phailin, Thai for "sapphire," made landfall at the Gopalpur port in Odisha's Ganjam district at around 9:15 pm.
About 500,000 people had been evacuated from the coastal areas of the densely-populated states of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, while 12 million were likely to be affected by the storm, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) officials said. "We have deployed around 2,300 personnel - the biggest strength ever," NDMA Vice-Chairman M Shashidhar Reddy said.
At least seven people were reported to be killed till the time of going to press, while most towns along the coast were deserted. But there were still some people trying to flee and the casualty figure was expected to rise.
Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said 18 helicopters, 12 aircraft and two warships had been kept ready by the government for rescue and relief operations in the two states.
The power utilities in Andhra Pradesh have kept the centralised breakdown teams on a stand-by, with necessary tools and equipment, to take up the restoration work immediately if the power supply is disrupted.
The Indian Railways had to cancel at least 30 trains, including the Bhubaneswar-New Delhi Rajdhani Express, to the coastal areas, while flights to the Odhisha capital, as well as Visakhapatnam, were also affected.
The Railways said it had taken the required steps and put its machinery on a stand-by to manage operations in the areas affected by the cyclone.
Even before landfall, coconut trees in villages along the coast were bent and broken in the gusting wind. Electrical poles were brought down and roads were littered with debris.
Some people took refuge in temples, others crammed into three-wheeled auto-rickshaws and headed inland.
"This is one of the largest evacuations undertaken in India," said NDMA's Reddy. The size of the storm made extensive damage to property more likely, he told reporters in New Delhi. "Our priority is to minimise loss of life."
Earlier in the day, a 20-foot protection wall near a fishing harbour in the Visakhapatnam port area collapsed and boats were damaged due to high waves.
Extensive damage
The weather department had warned of extensive damage to mud houses, major disruption of power and communication lines, and the flooding of rail tracks and roads. Flying debris was said to be another threat.
"In a storm of this magnitude, there is the potential for widespread damage to crops and livestock in the low-lying coastal areas and houses completely wiped away," said Kunal Shah, the head of aid group World Vision's emergency response team in India.
London-based Tropical Storm Risk classed the storm in Category 5 - the strongest such rating.
Many of the people along the coast are subsistence fishermen and farmers who live in mud-and-brick or thatched huts.
In 1999, a typhoon had battered the same region, killing 10,000 people.
India's disaster preparations have improved significantly since then and aid workers praised precautions for Phailin, such as early warnings, stocking of rations and evacuations.
"A lot has been learnt since 1999. While there could be extensive damage to property and crops, the death toll will be much less," said G Padmanabhan, emergency analyst at the UN Development Programme.
But despite all the warnings, some people refused to leave their homes.
"I have a small child, so I thought, how will I leave," asked Achamma, 25, as she clutched on to her boy in Donkuru, a fishing village in Andhra Pradesh, as waves crashed on to a nearby beach.
Police said a rescue had been launched for 18 fishermen stranded at sea off Paradip, a major port in Odisha, after their trawler ran out of fuel.
Paradip halted cargo operations on Friday. All vessels were ordered to leave the port, which handles coal, crude oil and iron ore. An oil tanker holding about 2 million barrels of oil, worth $220 million, was also moved, an oil company source said.
But the storm was not expected to hit the country's largest gas field, the D6 natural gas block in the Cauvery Basin, further down the east coast, Reliance Industries, the field operator, said.
Ports halt operations for two days
10 vessels shifted away from harbour at Paradip
There was a lull before the storm, quite literally, at most ports dotting the country's east coast. Even as Cyclone Phailin was heading closer, the Dhamra, Paradip and Gopalpur ports had suspended all operations for two days. Ten vessels were shifted away from the harbour, out of the channels in the high sea at the Paradip Port. Similar steps were taken by Dhamra and Gopalpur ports, too
Many trains cancelled, diverted
30 trains cancelled or diverted by the Railways
Thirty trains, including Bhubaneswar-New Delhi Rajdhani Express, were cancelled and many more diverted because of cyclonic conditions in the country's east coast. Chennai Central-Howrah Mail was diverted to run via Vijayawada, Warangal, Ballarshah, Gondia, Raipur, while South Central Railway set up helpline numbers at major stations for passengers to seek information on movement of trains.
Industries and plants adequately covered, say insurers
People to be hit as most houses are poorly insured
On the heavy impact of Cyclone Phailin on life, crops and property in the affected regions, officials of insurance companies said operating plants of energy and oil/gas companies are adequately covered. "While our estimates suggest that some life may be covered, property and houses are poorly insured. So, there could be some impact," said a senior official of a public general insurer.
50 teams of the National Disaster Relief Force pressed into service
12 million people expected to be affected by the cyclone
Around 500,000 people were evacuated from the coastal areas of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh but, NDMA, said 12 million were still likely to be affected by Cyclone Phailin that struck India's east coast on Saturday evening. The number of people stranded remains unclear. Around 50 teams of the National Disaster Relief Force, with medical and technical equipment, were undertaking rescue operations.
