Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], October 25 : The landfall process of Cyclone 'Dana' commenced in the intervening nights of October 24 and 25 and is expected to continue till the morning hours of Friday, the India Meteorological Department said.
In a post on X, the IMD said, "Landfall process has commenced. It lay near latitude 20.5° N and longitude 87.1°E, about 50 km east-northeast of Paradip (Odisha), 40 km south-southeast of Dhamara (Odisha) and 160 km southwest of Sagar Island (West Bengal)."
The weather department also informed that the cyclone Dana is very likely to move north-northwestwards and cross the north Odisha and West Bengal coasts between Puri and Sagar Island close to Bhitarkanika and Dhamara (Odisha) during the next 3 to 4 hours as a severe cyclonic storm with a wind speed of 100-110 kmph gusting 120 kmph.
"The landfall process has commenced and the forward sector of the wall cloud region is entering into land. The landfall process would continue till today, the 25th of October morning. The system is under continuous surveillance of the Doppler Weather Radar at Paradip," the IMD said.
Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi monitored the situation at the State Emergency Control Room, Rajiv Bhavan, in Bhubaneswar.
Heavy rain and gusty winds were witnessed in Odisha's Bhadrak as the landfall of Cyclone Dana commenced.
IMD Director, Manorama Mohanty, said, " The severe cyclonic storm over the northwest Bay of Bengal has moved north-northwestward and at a speed of 15 km/hr during the last 6 hours... it is very likely to move northwestward and cross the north Odisha coast and the West Bengal coast between Puri and Sagar Island...during next 3-4 hours...the landfall process has commenced...it will continue till morning of 25th October."
Odisha Chief Secretary Manoj Ahuja said that six lakh people have been evacuated and moved to cyclone shelters.
"Chief Minister reviewed the cyclone preparedness and situation... All districts have been assessed. More than 6 lakh people have been evacuated and moved to cyclone shelters where cooked food is being provided... Electricity has been switched off, telecommunications have also been shut down till tomorrow... Several senior officers and ministers have been deployed by the Chief Minister... All arrangements have been made to deal with the situation," he said.
Earlier, Suresh Pujari, State Revenue and Disaster Management Minister said that around 10 districts are likely to be affected by the cyclone, adding that the evacuation proves has already reached its conclusion.
While talking to the media, Pujari said, "Around 10 districts are likely to be affected by the cyclone, comprising 60 blocks, 2131 villages, 12 urban local bodies, and 55 wards in different urban local bodies. The evacuation process has already reached its conclusion...Three lakh seventy-seven thousand people have already been evacuated...We have prepared 7307 relief centres across different districts. 4756 cyclone relief centres are already operational...6454 domestic animals have been brought to relief centres...213 medical teams have been deployed to take care of the evacuated people 120 veterinary teams have also been positioned in different locations."