Cyclone Tauktae now an ‘extremely severe cyclonic storm’, to hit Gujarat coast later today

The Indian Meteorological Department has announced that Cyclone Tauktae has intensified into a ‘extremely severe cyclonic storm’. It is said to make landfall on the Gujarat coast by Monday evening with winds up to 185 kmph.

https://twitter.com/Indiametdept/status/1394125671052419072?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Currently, the cyclone is said to be about 120 west-southwest of Mumbai resulting in strong gushes of wind and rainfall. The coastal areas of Maharashtra have been put on high alert.

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The cyclone has also begun to wreak havoc in parts of Kerala with high tides creating chaos and leaving hundreds displaced.

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As per officials, Cyclone Tauktae could result in flash floods and landslides in the coastal areas of Goa, Kerala and Karnataka. 

Damage Done

Cyclone Tauktae leaves two dead and one injured after a tree falls on a hut in Maharashtra’s Jalgaon. 

Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant too announced the death of two and damage to several houses due to the gusty winds triggered by the cyclone.

https://twitter.com/DrPramodPSawant/status/1393599877389570052?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

The cyclone claimed two more lives in Kerala as the storm intensified. More than 2000 people have been shifted to 71 camps as precautionary measures. 

Cyclone Preparedness

Owing to the worrisome situation, more than 100 teams of the National Disaster Response Force have been deployed in Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Maharashtra.

The Indian Air Force has also deployed two C-130J for transportation of more than 160 personnel and more than 16.5 tonnes of NDRF relief load from Kolkata to Ahmedabad.

https://twitter.com/ANI/status/1394117481795440640?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

The timely weather alerts by the Indian Coast Guard resulted in all of 4526 fishing boats in Maharashtra and 2258 in Gujarat returning safely to harbour from the sea.

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Another 1200 people were safely evacuated from the coastal areas of Malia in Junagadh Gujarat.

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Covid-19 vaccination drives across several locations in Maharashtra and Gujarat have been called off for two days.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a high-level meeting that included Home Minister Amit Shah to review the preparedness of States, central Ministries and agencies concerned and asked them to ensure all were safely evacuated.