The Odisha government has instructed collectors in 18 districts to prepare for a probable cyclone coming in from the Bay of Bengal, ahead of the creation of a low-pressure region in the Andaman Sea.
In a letter to the district collectors of Ganjam, Gajapati, Puri, Khurda, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Jajpur, Bhadrak, Balasore, Nayagarh, Cuttack, Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar, Dhenkanal, Malkangiri, Koraput, Rayagada, and Kandhamal, Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) P K Jena advised them to prepare ahead.
He urged district collectors to monitor IMD predictions and warnings on a regular basis, and to send a compliance report on the required steps by May 6 with complete information on the arrangements made in their areas.
Under the influence of cyclonic circulation, a low-pressure region is expected to form over the South Andaman Sea and its vicinity by Friday, according to the IMD. In the next 48 hours, the system will most likely deepen into a depression and move north-westward.
Conditions are also favorable for the creation of a storm next week, according to the IMD.
Jena instructed the district collectors to identify vulnerable persons and relocate them to safe shelters, as well as to establish a detailed evacuation plan for those who live in kutcha houses, near the coast, or in low-lying areas. The elderly, disabled, women, and children should all be sent to geo-tagged shelters.
