Damage May Top $1 Billion

[Gajji_maraja]

Cyclone Hudhud roared across India's eastern seaboard on Sunday leaving widespread damage to trees and buildings and killing at least six people dead despite a massive evacuation effort in the coastal states of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. Andhra Pradesh Cheif Minister Chandrababu Naidu was urging India's Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, to declare the storm a national calamity, India Today reports.

The state government has not officially determined the cost of damage, but estimations are saying it could be at least Rs 10,000 crore,' or 100 billion rupees (around ​$1.632 billion U.S. dollars), The Times of India reported.

According to the BBC, Hudhud brought winds of 127 mph as it passed near Visakhapatnam, uprooting hundreds of trees and bringing down power lines. The storm has since weakened but continues to deliver high winds and drenching rain. Authorities say it is too early to know the full extent of damage, partly because communications are out for many areas. Damage assessments will start on Monday, Reuters reports.

"We are asking people not to come out of their houses," N. Chandrababa Naidu told Headlines Today television. "We are mobilizing men and material immediately."

The busy port city of Visakhapatnam, known locally as Vizag, was hammered as the storm made landfall, Reuters reports. Images on social media show trees and power lines snapped like twigs and debris strewn across city streets.
According to The Times of India, the Eastern Naval Command was dealt a blow and sustained damage to the naval base, naval air base INS Dega and residential quarters.

Transportation continued to remain on hold. Trains were canceled, and National Highway-16, which connects Chennai to Kolkata and passes through the Port City, remained shut down from Saturday evening, The Times of India reported. Port operations were suspended and property in several ports was damaged.

Widespread power outages were reported and telecommunications were down throughout the region. The Associated Press reports that electricity lines were disconnected to avoid electrocutions by downed lines.

Some residents were reporting being without water, Reuters reports. At least 350 students were stranded without food or water at a hostel in Vizag, disaster management officials said.

NDTV reported that sea water overwhelmed and damaged the Kakinada-Uppada highway in the East Godavari district. The Ichapuram-Kakinada national highway was closed to all traffic by authorities.

The National Disaster Response Force has sent in 42 teams consisting of more than 2,000 rescuers and 220 boats for search and rescue operations, the BBC reports. The NDRF is also airlifting several large wood and metal cutters to Andhra Pradesh and Odisha in preparation for impacts. Authorities say that aircraft will start to do fly-overs of the area on Monday morning.

National and State Disaster Response Forces are being sent to coastal areas to assist with evacuations and the possibility of search and rescue efforts, NDTV reports. The Navy and Coast Guard are also on alert to provide aid.

The Times of India reports that Hudhud is named after the national bird of Israel at the suggestion of Oman.

[Gajji_maraja]

Almost Rs 10,000 Crores :(

[ipaddress0]

:3D_Smiles:

[Gajji_maraja]

Andhra Pradesh CM asks the Centre to declare the cyclone storm 'Hudhud' that hit the state's coast as a national calamity and also sought an ad hoc relief package of Rs 2,000 crore. At a review meeting on rescue and relief measures with heads of departments at secretariat in Hyderabad, Naidu said he has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in this regard, PTI reported.

[k2s]

bye1

[Gajji_maraja]