Cyclones in Odisha in the last 10 Years

Insight Bureau: It is quite interesting that we live in a state which is the favorite place for cyclones, storms to hang out, isn’t it? It is unfortunate at the same time as we have seen many deaths and casualties as well.

As Odisha, the strongest state of the country has witnessed a number of cyclones and faced them fiercely, a possible cyclone is ahead on its way to say hello to the state. The cyclone is likely to cross the state around 10th of this month.

Well, there is a long list of cyclones crushing over Odisha, here we are presenting the full list of cyclones that hit Odisha in the last decade.

Memories of the 1999 super cyclone is still fresh, wind speed of which could not be properly ascertained at the meteorological centre, Bhubaneswar, as the velocity crossed the capacity of the anemometer available then. The cyclone left over 10,000 people dead. 

Cyclone Phailin- The Giant disaster

The state had experienced another major calamity in cyclone Phailin. It made landfall near Gopalpur in Ganjam district on October 12, 2013, becoming the second strongest tropical cyclone in India since the 1999 one.

 

It had hit Odisha at a wind speed of 140 mph and caused severe damage.

Twenty-three people were killed in the cyclonic storm after the State government set a “Zero Casualty” mission with precautionary measures in place, the records stated.

 

2. Hudhud 

Super cyclone Phailin was followed by cyclone Hudhud in 2014 that struck the Visakhapatnam city of Andhra Pradesh on October 12, 2014.

Odisha was affected by Hudhud. The casualty count in the state was two while more than 60 people lost their lives in Andhra Pradesh.

     

3. Titli

Cyclone Titli in 2018 had come as a major shock, as the weather system had unexpectedly changed its course and entered Gajapati district, where no major preparations were made to deal with the calamity. Seventy-seven people were killed in Odisha due to heavy rainfall and landslide that accompanied the cyclone.

 

4. Fani

Extreme Severe Cyclonic Storm Fani hit the country’s eastern coast in the year 2019, causing extensive damage in Odisha. Fani had reached its peak intensity a day before its landfall and was marked as a high-end Category-4 major hurricane, with maximum sustained wind speed ranging from 209-251 kmph. The state is still struggling to recover from the damage, Fani caused.

 

5. Bulbul

Heavy rain and high-velocity winds triggered by cyclone ‘Bulbul‘ claimed at least two lives and wreaked havoc in most parts of coastal Odisha.

 

6. Amphan

Cyclone Amphan in 2020 had also claimed lives and damaged property in Odisha and West Bengal. It made landfall near Bakkhali in West Bengal on May 20. It was the first pre-monsoon super cyclone of this century that emerged from the Bay of Bengal.

 

7. Yaas

In May 2021, Cyclone Yaas hit Odisha’s Dhamra and left two people dead.

 

8. Gulab

In September 2021, cyclone Gulab crossed the Odisha-Andhra Pradesh coast, bringing with it heavy rain. More than 20 people across different states and neighbouring countries died in cyclone Gulab. No death, however, was reported in Odisha, records show. The name Gulab was proposed by Pakistan.

 

9. Shaheen

The remnants of Cyclone Gulab then gave rise to Cyclone Shaheen, in a unique weather phenomenon. The name Shaheen was given by Qatar.

 

10. Jawad

Jawad was the first winter cyclone of 2021. It was a weak tropical cyclone that caused major disruptions over Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal in India while bringing heavy rainfall and strong winds over these states as a weakened system.

 

The Naveen Patnaik government has amazingly tackled all the cyclones that Odisha’s disaster management system has got a lot of praises.