Revisiting the 1999 Odisha super cyclone that claimed 10,000 lives as Montha approaches

The Odisha government evacuated people from low-lying areas and hilly terrain prone to landslides in Malkangiri, Koraput, Rayagada, Gajapati, Ganjam, Nabarangpur, Kalahandi and Kandhamal districts. As many as 140 rescue teams of over 5,000 personnel from NDRF, ODRAF and the fire services have been deployed

1999 Cyclone Paradip in Odisha

The preparations and high alerts reminded one of one of the deadliest super cyclone, Cyclone Paradip in 1999, which hit the coastal districts of the state, and claimed around 10,000 lives.

Referred to as the Paradip Cyclone, the most severe Super Cyclonic Storm lashed the coastal districts of Odisha with a wind speed of 250 kmph on 29th October, 1999, claiming around 10,000 lives and causing severe damage to properties in the state’s Balasore, Bhadrak, Kendrapara, Jagatsinghpur, Puri, and Ganjam districts.

According to a white paper on the loss and damage caused by the 1999 super cyclone, the storm destroyed economic, social, and administrative infrastructure, and uprooted several trees, affecting thousands of livestock, and 9,885 people. Out of these, 8,119 were from Jagatsinghpur district alone, as per a memorandum released by the Odisha government.

With 22,143 fishing nets and 9,085 boats being destroyed by the disaster, the fisherfolk community bore the greatest loss. The report of the government also put the loss of cattle heads at 3,15,886, poultry at 18,83,468 and other small animals at 3,16,372.

About 13 lakh hectares of paddy crop, 1.76 lakh hectares of vegetables and 2.57 lakh hectares of other crops were destroyed, bringing life to a standstill, according to Action Aid Association (India). The total estimated value of loss to crop would be about Rs. 1,733 crores, as per the memorandum.

A very large number of school and government college buildings were damaged, and power supply systems were disrupted in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack cities due to the super cyclone.

The ghosts of the “Black Friday” cyclone continue to haunt Odisha till date. With memories of schools and other educational institutions being shut, survival on a candle’s light with no electricity connectivity for over ten days in the state, the majority of the state’s population came out of the disaster through immense courage, hope, and many lessons.

How is the Odisha administration preparing for cyclone Montha?

Lessons learnt from the super cyclone ‘Paradip’ helped the Odisha administration prepare more stringently to prevent the devastating impact of approaching cyclones in the years that followed.

This time, with cyclone Montha approaching the state, the administration has already announced the closure of schools and anganwadi centres in nine districts till October 30, news agency PTI reported. The leave of government employees have also been cancelled till October 30.

East Coast Railway and the South Central Railway have announced cancellation, diversion, and short termination of some trains operating in the Waltair region and connected routes.

According to Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) D K Singh, the administration has sealed all sea beaches to prevent tourists and local people from entering beaches. The state government has also advised fisherfolk to avoid venturing into the Bay of Bengal, along and off the Odisha coast, till October 29.

The IMD has also suggested hoisting of local cautionary signal (LC-III) No-III at Gopalpur Port and Distant Warning Signal No-II (DW-II) at Paradip, Dhamra, Puri, Chhatrapur and Chandbali ports of Odisha, PTI reported.

Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi is likely to review the situation later on Tuesday, PTI quoted an official.

IMD alerts in Odisha

The IMD has issued a ‘red’ alert as it has forecast scattered heavy to very heavy falls (7 to 20 cm) with isolated extremely heavy rainfall (over 20 cm) very likely to occur at isolated places in Malakangiri, Koraput, Rayagada, Gajapati, and Ganjam districts.

Similarly, an ‘orange’ alert predicting heavy to very heavy rainfall (7 to 20 cm) was also issued for Nabarangpur, Kalahandi, Kandhmal, Nayagarh, Nuapada, Bolangir, Sonepur, Boudh, Khurda, Puri, and Bargarh districts.

A ‘Yellow’ warning is in place for heavy rainfall (7 to 11 cm) forecast on Tuesday in the districts of Angul, Dhenkanal, Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapada, Jajpur, Keonjhar, Bhadrak, Balasore, Mayurbhanj, Sambalpur, Deogarh, Jharsuguda, and Sundergarh.