Cyclone Phailin: mass evacuation has saved many lives
Indian authorities have begun clearing the miles of debris left by the powerful cyclone Phailin, which flooded many villages and destroyed tens of thousands of thatched houses, but said that the mass evacuation of regions had saved many lives.
The storm, the most powerful to hit India in 10 years has wiped out for hundreds of millions of dollars of crops. But 20 hours after it made landfall in Orissa, only 17 deaths were reported.
The results should, however, to rise as rescuers manage to reach the most remote areas on the coast, which remain isolated due to blocked roads and lines and telecommunications cables destroyed.
The police chief of Orissa, Amitabh Thakur, acknowledged that the damage was enormous, but welcomed the fact that some people were killed by the storm, putting the result in the account the evacuation.
Cyclone Phailin sowed destruction in its wake. Photo: AFP / MANAN VATSYAYANA
Phailin has lost much of its power landfall early Saturday evening, but the weather was still rainy and windy in some areas areas and meteorologists warned Orissa and other states affected by the storm are struggling with torrential rains, strong winds and rough seas for another day.
The Indian government has been criticized for not responding quickly enough to a series of floods and landslides in June in the state of Uttarakhand, where more than 6,000 people lost their lives.
Phailin with the authorities decided not to take any chances, especially a cyclone similar had at least 10 000 deaths in Orissa in 1999.
Nearly a million residents have been evacuated from the coast to the approach of the storm, more than 870,000 in the State of Orissa and 100,000 in the neighboring state of Andhra Pradesh.
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