Gulab makes landfall between Odisha and Andhra Pradesh

 Two tourists from Bengal drowned in Balasore before the storm hit while bathing in an already turbulent sea

Fishing boats anchored on the Puri beach in Odisha on Sunday.: PTI

Subhashish Mohanty   |   TT  |  Bhubaneswar   |   27.09.21  :  The cyclonic storm Gulab made landfall on Sunday evening between Gopalpur in south Odisha and Kalingapatnam in north Andhra Pradesh, a few hours after two tourists from Bengal drowned in Balasore while bathing in an already turbulent sea.

The storm’s impact was felt in the Odisha districts of Gajapati, Rayagada, Koraput and Malkangiri. Srikakulam district of Andhra has also been affected.

Around 9pm — three hours since the landfall process started — the wind was not very strong in Odisha, special relief commissioner P.K. Jena told PTI. Intermittent mild to moderate rainfall is reported from a few districts, Jena added.

Around midnight, reports suggested that the storm was weakening.

Debarshi Singh, 23, and Abhradip Acharya, 22, both residents of Madhyamgram, were swept away at Talsari beach in Balasore district, which borders the Digha beach in Bengal, around 2.30-3pm.

“They were from Madhyamgram in Bengal. Five tourists were bathing in the sea when two of them went in deep, defying the warnings from local people. They were swept away,” a source in the Talsari marine police told The Telegraph.

Efforts are on to trace a fishing trawler that had put out to sea two days ago from somewhere between Puri and Konark and has not returned.

As a precaution, the state government had ordered all schools closed in 11 districts. Chief minister Naveen Patnaik, who is in Delhi on an official visit, spoke to the collectors to review the safety measures.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Naveen and promised all help.

All those living in vulnerable areas had been evacuated before the cyclonic storm struck.

Mindful of the Covid situation, the state government sent masks and sanitisers to the shelters and urged people to adhere to the pandemic protocol.

The landfall witnessed tidal waves about half a metre taller than those seen during astronomical tides, particularly in Ganjam district where many low-lying areas were flooded.

Many parts of the state, particularly the seven worst-hit districts and Khurda, Puri and Bhubaneswar city, suffered heavy rainfall ahead of the landfall.

Train services were cancelled, diverted, rescheduled or truncated. Flights from Bhubaneswar airport were cancelled in the evening.

The Odisha government has deployed 42 Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force units, 24 National Disaster Response Force units and 103 fire services units. The navy has deployed two ships --- INS Dega and INS Rajaji -- and an aircraft in Visakhapatnam.

Odisha is unlikely to seek navy or air force assistance, special relief commissioner P.K. Jena said.

“Odisha already has a robust mechanism to deal with the aftermath of a cyclone. I don’t think we shall require the services of the navy or air force,” he said.

Danger signals have been hoisted in all the ports of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha.