NEW DELHI: The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has earmarked its highest-ever number of teams for deployment in Odisha and West Bengal to undertake relief and rescue operations during cyclone Yaas, its chief S N Pradhan said on Tuesday.
He added that according to reports received from the state governments, more than 8 lakh people have been evacuated to safety in West Bengal, the same figures for Odisha were over 2 lakh locals.
The federal contingency force has committed a total of 113 teams for deployment in five states and the Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands which are expected to be affected by the cyclone brewing in the Bay of Bengal.
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1579 East Midnapore: Rough sea in the Bay of Bengal ahead of Cyclone Yaas landfall, at Digha in East Midnapore district, Tuesday, May 25, 2021. PTI
Bhubaneswar/Kolkata, May 25
Indian authorities prepared for Cyclone ‘Yaas’ to make landfall on Wednesday morning, cancelling trains and dispatching hundreds of personnel of the National Disaster Relief Force to eastern states as the country braces for the second cyclone in as many weeks.
The Indian Meteorological department said ‘Yaas’, a severe cyclonic storm, is likely to make landfall near Dhamra Port in Odisha’s Bhadrak district early on Wednesday morning.
Dr Umashankar Das, a scientist at the Regional Meteorological Centre, Bhubaneswar said that the landfall will most likely be between Dhamra and Chandbali in the district.