It’s the October nightmare in Odisha once again. It’s in this post-monsoon month that nature chooses to turn the demented arsonist and unleash cyclones in the lives of people. Cyclone Dana hit the state’s coastal districts late on Thursday night. Dana is just the October curse under a different name.
In 2013, it was Phailin; in 2014, it was Hudhud; in 2018, it was Titli and there were smaller ones to fill the blanks till Dana struck. Let’s not forget the mother of them all, the Super Cyclone of 1999. Amid the long season of festivities and happiness, the cyclones arrive as a stark reminder to the powerlessness of humans. It’s like the neighbourhood bully expending unnecessary force to assert its power over people who cannot fight back.
Fighting back against the elements is never an option. The geographical location of the Bay of Bengal, one of the most cyclone-prone regions of the world, cannot be shifted, nor can its proximity to the North West Pacific ocean, home to typhoons, nor the complex interaction between the remnants of typhoons with the brewing air and current systems on the high seas nor the pre-and post-monsoon changes in the tropical weather patterns. Odisha also experiences pre-monsoon cyclones. Fani of 2019, among the fiercest in recent times, hit it in early May.
However, the state has done well where it can: containing damage. Conservative estimates suggest at least 10,000 people perished in the Super Cyclone. The damage to property and infrastructure was immense. The human casualty from Fani, in comparison, was less than a hundred. The mention of Super Cyclone never fails to stir horrifying memories of human bodies lying in piles, bloated carcasses of animals strewn around, collapsing houses with thatches blown off in the wind, lifeless cables hanging close to the ground or resting on it and poles twisted at impossible angles among others. That is no more the case. The scene is less gory now.
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The state had learnt a hard lesson then. Soon enough, it developed a sound response mechanism. As the preparatory measures for cyclone Dana suggest, the state is better prepared to tackle the fallout of cyclones than earlier. The damage to life, livestock and property has been continually down ever. Over 3,00,000 of the targeted 10 lakh persons in 11 coastal districts, according to Odisha’s Chief Minister Mohan Majhi a day before the landfall, had been shifted to fully-equipped relief centres. His aim: zero casualty. Under his predecessor, Naveen Patnaik, disaster management in Odisha had made significant leaps. The new chief minister is doing well to take it forward.
Also Read: By Grace Of Lord Jagannath, No Life Lost In Cyclone Dana: Odisha CM Mohan Majhi
Before Dana made landfall, an action plan was in place for the deployment of teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) in the vulnerable areas. As many as 178 Fire Services teams had been put in the ready mode with 40 in reserve for emergency situations. Multipurpose cyclone and flood shelters were identified and stocked with provisions for food, drinking water, lighting and health facilities.
As this piece is being written Dana has nearly run its course in Odisha and moved on. Soon, it will be time for the evacuated population to return to their homes. They may not find them in the earlier shape. It’s possible sea water would have overrun their farm land. For a people by now used to cyclones, the degree of severity may not make much difference, but the very fact that they have to go through the difficult process again and again may have become an energy-sapping affair.
Also Read: Flight Operations Resume At Bhubaneswar & Kolkata Airports As Landfall Process Continues
But there is no escape. The October curse would continue to be a part of their lives.
(By arrangements with Perspective Bytes)