By Debi Mohanty in Balasore
and Sikta Mukherjee in Kolkata
Balasore/Kolkata: The very severe cyclonic storm Yaas crossed north Odisha coast about 20 km south of Balasore during 10.30 to 11.30 am today with estimated wind speed of 130-140 kmph gusting to 155 kmph. It was likely to move north-northwestwards and weaken gradually into a severe cyclonic storm and thereafter into cyclonic storm later today. Thousands of mud houses were damaged, trees and poles uprooted across the coastal areas in both states. There was no confirmation yet on number of casualties.
Though the state government of Odisha had successfully evacuated approximately 6 lakh people from low lying areas to cyclone shelters, some didn’t leave their house. Reason: Fear of Covid infection. In the midst of the Cyclone’s landfall, Odisha reported 11623 fresh infections during the last 24 hours. Today being the full moon day, the tides had thrown a dangerous picture. Tides of 3.4 metres had breached the shores at many places including Ranasinghpur village in Bhograi block while the residents of Chaumukh panchayat in Baliapal block (both Bhograi and Baliapal are in Balasore district) informed the same.
Also read: Army put on alert as ‘Very Severe’ cyclone ‘Yaas’ is set to hit the eastern coast in next 12 hours
Within a week after Cyclone Amphan had ravaged coastal Odisha and West Bengal in May last year, the daily COVID cases had almost doubled within a fortnight in both states. On 20 May, 2020, when Amphan made a landfall in West Bengal, the state had recorded 3,103 COVID-19 cases. On June 4, that year, the number had surged to 6,876.
Medical experts have raised their concerns this time too as Cyclone Yaas made a landfall in coastal Odisha today morning and then moved over to West Bengal.
West Bengal is having 20,000 cases of corona virus disease per day at present but some of the areas is having high risk of devastation by the cyclone which can cause another biggest burden and cases can increase more, Dr. P.S Banerjee, MD, a physician.
“Now, the super cyclone Yaas will make the people’s life miserable. It is very crucial to ensure that social distancing is maintained at rehabilitation camps where the cyclone affected people migrate from coastal areas. But is that possible? These rehabilitation centres can become hot bed of Covid, said Dr. Saswati Chatterjee, a gynaecologist.
Dr. Raman Raj, a leading heart specialist too pointed out that because last year due to Amphan, COVID cases had increased, and said less than 50 percent, number of people should be there in shelters keeping pandemic and covid protocols in mind and medical facilities should be mandatory.
“The shelters should be kept sanitised and everyone should wear their mask which is very important or else covid cases will increase rapidly,” said a senior nurse in a COVID facility .
Dr. Raman Raj also wanted the government to ensure that there were enough oxygen tanks and a greater number of beds so that there is no space crunch that is so essential to check spread of the pandemic.
With the fear of COVID-19 on one hand and the ferocity of cyclone on the other, it is like sailing between Scylla and Charybdis for the hapless villagers of coastal areas of both states.
In Odisha right from the morning Jaidev Das (30) of Chaumukh village in Baliapal block of coastal Balasore district had been at the entrance of his house. He had some Muri (puffed rice) and tea. As he saw, water level in front of his house kept rising. “It’s around 3 feet high now, any moment it could enter the house,” Jaideb said.
At 9.30 am, half an hour after Cyclone Yaas’ landfall process had begun. Though scared, Jaideb couldn’t resist his mind or legs. He set out with a long stick, wading through the waist high water to have a look at the condition of the pond, where, he along with some others had spent Rs 3 lakh.
The whole of village of approximately 430 families, depend on fishing in the sea. Many are into prawn cultivation as well. According to Jaideb, there are 14 such ponds in the village. They also grow groundnuts which they sell and paddy for consumption.
The villagers said, rain that began in the morning of May 25, intensified towards the afternoon as wind speed turned from soothing to heavier level. But both rain and wind reached scary levels from this morning.
Jaidev says, he and his fellow partners had spent Rs 3 lakh in prawn farming. “We expected a profit of at least Rs five lakh. That’s gone now,” says Jaideb with his hand on his heads.
Equal questions are being thrown by all in the village. “We had heard of tides breaching shore and reaching villages kilometers away during 1999 Odisha super cyclone, but had never experienced this furious side of the sea,” said another resident.
In West Bengal too, rising river water levels due to the landfall of cyclone ‘Yaas’ inundated large parts of the coastal districts of Purba Medinipur and South 24 Parganas, causing massive damage in the region. The Meteorological department said the tide height touched more than 5.5 meter in many places in East Midnapore and South 24 Parganas.
