Cyclone Ditwah: 3 dead in Tamil Nadu, rain batters region
At least 3 people have died due to rain-related incidents in Tamil Nadu, as Cyclone Ditwah continued to batter the state. The cyclone and rains brought by it, inundated huge swathes of land and also caused loss of cattle. The state has kept 28 disaster management teams on standby and are also planning to call additional teams from nearby states, to help tackle the cyclone.
New Delhi: At least 3 people died due to the impact of Cyclone Ditwah in Tamil Nadi on Sunday. The deaths were caused due to rain-related incidents, which were in turn a result of the cyclone, said Tamil Nadu Revenue and Disaster Management Minister KKSSR Ramachandran.
Deaths due to wall collapse, electrocution
According to a report in the Times of India, which quoted Ramachandran, the 3 people were killed in 3 separate incidents. While 1 person died in a wall collapse in Tuticorin, another died in Thanjavur. The death in Thanjavur was also caused by a wall collapse, said the Minister. The third death in the state was caused due to electrocution. A 20-year-old died in Mayiladuthurai, he added.
The cyclone also led people to lose their cattle and loss to crops in the region. So far 149 cattle have been reported either dead or missing and 57,000 hectares of farmland across the delta region, including 24,000 hectares in Nagapattinam, 15,000 in Thiruvarur and 8,000 in Mayiladuthurai has been submerged under water. Flights
The state has mobilized disaster management teams to manage the cyclone and help marooned people. In total 28 disaster management teams are on standby at the time. Additional teams are being sent from other states, to help manage the disaster. All SDRF and NDRF teams will work in severely affected regions of the state and help in rescue, relief and rehabilitation work.
A 24-hour State Emergency Operations Centre has been set up to provide any swift action that may be needed to tackle the disaster. The IMD has reported extremely heavy rainfall in parts of the state. While Karaikal received 19 cm of rain, in Sembanarkoil it was 17 cm in the past 24 hours, said the weather agency. The weather department has also issued an orange alert for some districts in Andhra Pradesh, amid the cyclone in Tamil Nadu.
Normal life was impacted in both Tamil Nadu and Puducherry due to the cyclone. In Rameswaram and Nagapattinam, very heavy rains inundated the low lying areas. According to an update this morning, the cyclone moved nearly northwards with a speed of 5 kmph and it is located about 80 km east of Karaikal, 100 km northeast of Vedaraniyam, 160 km southeast of Puducherry and 250 km south of Chennai. The weather department said that the storm had initially weakened, but has once again re-intensified as it neared the coastline. They also said that landfall was unlikely.