Cyclone Dana Live Updates: Landfall brings heavy rainfall, gusty winds to Odisha
NDTV
IMD's Mrutunjay Mohapatra said the cyclone will gradually weaken on Friday and move deeper in the state, triggering heavy rains in most places.
Authorities remained on alert as the landfall of 'severe' Cyclone Dana on the Odisha coast began on Thursday night and continued into the early hours of Friday. The coastal districts of Bhadrak, Kendrapara and Balasore witnessed sudden increase in wind speed which reached 100 kmph to 110 kmph and extremely heavy rain. Similar conditions were also witnessed in West Bengal.
The storm moved north-northwest at a speed of 15 kmph over the past six hours before making landfall between Bhitarkanika in the Kendrapara district and Dhamra in Bhadrak, with wind speeds of around 110 kmph, a senior IMD official said. Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi said the state has already evacuated around 5.84 lakh people from the high risk zones located in the low-lying areas of coastal districts.
IMD DG Mrutunjay Mohapatra said the landfall also accelerated the tidal surge, which could go up to two metres above the astronomical height, in Kendrapada, Balasore and Bhadrak districts. Mohapatra said that the system will continue to remain as the severe cyclonic storm will gradually weaken on Friday and move deeper in the state, triggering heavy rains in most places.
