Relief and rescue will be critical in the next few hours, says Met department.Cyclone Hudhud has passed over Visakhapatnam. Almost. As it goes deeper inland, the 195-km per hour windspeed has gone down to 120 kmph, and it is set to reduce further over the next six hours. For the battered city, it is now time to focus on relief and rescue work, says the Indian Meteorological Department. (Read: Cyclone Hudhud: Airtel Sets Up Helpline for Tracking People)
The last phase of the cyclone in Visakhapatnam had "great damage potential" and relief and rescue will be "critical in the next few hours," IMD official LS Rathore said at a press conference.
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"The Visakhapatnam situation is very serious," K Hymavathi, the special commissioner for disaster management for Andhra Pradesh told Reuters by telephone. "Telecommunications are disrupted - even our control room is not able to operate properly. People staying in their apartments are so afraid that they are panicking and calling us," she said.(Read: Cyclone Hudhud Batters Vizag, Where Winds Sounded Like Explosions)
Hudhud had hit the coast with a wind speed of about 170-180 kmph, gusting to 195 kmph. But by evening the wind speed had dropped. The met office expects a further reduction at the end of another six hours. By Monday morning, flight operations in the region can be resumed, they say. (Read: Cyclone Hudhud Loses Speed as it Crosses Andhra Pradesh: 10 Developments)
For now, it is raining heavily in the district and in neighbouring coastal districts. Heavy rainfall is also expected in parts of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal in the next 24 hours.
In Odisha, the wind speed around 70 km per hour. The districts that would experience heavy rain include Malkangiri, Koraput, Raigad, Kalahandi, Nabarangpur, Kandhamal, Ganjam and Gajapati.(Read: In Odisha, Phailin Survivors say Hudhud Can't be Worse)
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