Cyclone Gaja ripped through Nagapattinam early on Friday uprooting trees and snapping power lines leaving a trail of destruction in coastal districts besides claiming 13 lives and flooding standing crops. The cyclonic storm crossed Tamil Nadu’s coast between Nagapattinam and nearby Vedaranyam in the wee hours of Friday, bringing in heavy rain in the coastal regions, according to a weather bulletin.
Winds gusting up to 120 kmph uprooted trees, snapped electric cables and blew off roofing-sheets. According to officials, ten men and three women died and 28 head of cattle perished in cyclone related incidents despite authorities evacuating as many as 81,948 people to 471 relief centres in Cuddalore, Nagapattinam, Ramanathapuram, Thanjavur, Pudukottai and Tiruvarur districts. The storm caused heavy damage to the 16th century Shrine Basilica at Velankanni in Nagapattinam district.
Due to gusty winds, the rood cross on top of the church broke and fell, Church authorities said. The church is built in accordance with Gothic architecture. Authorities said the 75-feet tall stone statue of Jesus erected in front of the Morning Star Church in the town, sustained structural damage. According to church officials, the hands of the statue have suffered damage. The roof of the Museum of Offerings in the town has also been damaged.
Expressing grief over the deaths, Chief Minister K Palaniswami sanctioned a solatium of Rs 10 lakh to the kin of those who died and Rs 25,000 to Rs 1 lakh for the injured.
The CM said he has ordered officials to immediately determine the extent of damage to crops, fishing boats, houses, and cattle. “I have ordered relief efforts on a war-footing,” he said, adding Ministers are carrying out work in districts assigned to them.
The Centre has assured the Tamil Nadu Government of all assistance to deal with the situation arising out of the cyclonic storm ‘Gaja’. Home Minister Rajnath Singh also directed Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba to monitor the situation in Tamil Nadu and provide all help to the State administration.
“Spoke to CM Shri K Palaniswami regarding the situation in the cyclone affected areas of Tamil Nadu. Assured all possible assistance from the Centre in mitigating the situation arising due to cyclone. Asked the HS to monitor the situation & provide all help to the State admin (sic),” Singh tweeted.
Besides loss of lives, 1,471 huts were partially damaged and 216 fully destroyed. A total of 4,987 trees got uprooted in these districts.
Farmers’ leader PR Pandian told PTI lakhs of coconut trees, plantain and acres of paddy crop have been seriously affected due to the gusty winds. He demanded adequate compensation for the farmers. State owned Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation’s field assets, including 13,025 electricity poles, 13 local distribution transformers, and 1,000 cables were damaged in rain-related incidents.
The heavy rain in districts, including Tiruvarur and Thanjavur, and widespread rain in other parts, has come as a boon to the State which was staring at a rainfall deficit during the monsoon season which commenced on October 1.
“Now the deficit stands at 23 per cent. The rainfall ranged between the lowest of 1 cm in several towns to the highest of 17 cm in Tiruvarur district followed by 16 cm in Thanjavur,” a Met official said.
According to weather office sources, 6 cm rain was reported in Nagapattinam district which bore the brunt of the storm, while Cuddalore district reported rainfall between 9 cm and 12 cm.
“The system has now become a depression and has entered land area of neighbouring Kerala through Dindigul and Theni districts,” the sources said.
The CM said 216 medical camps have been organised to check spread of epidemics in storm-hit regions. As many as 7,000 electricity poles had been dispatched to vulnerable districts in advance for replacement, he said, adding steps have been taken on a war-footing to restore power supply.
Adequate precautionary measures were taken by authorities to tackle the situation, he said. Power supply has been suspended since Thursday evening in Nagapattinam district. Traffic remains disrupted in most parts of Nagapattinam and Karaikal districts.
A holiday has been declared for educational institutions in regions, including Nagapattinam and Tiruvarur districts. Revenue Minister RB Udaya Kumar told reporters that the Government has tackled the cyclone situation successfully.
“This was a challenging task...We are confident that we have faced it safely 100 per cent,” he said, adding all post-cyclone tasks like cleaning up storm affected areas has begun.
In a rare gesture, DMK president and Opposition leader MK Stalin lauded the State Disaster Management Authority for its efforts to tackle the severe cyclonic storm.
Heavy rain and strong winds lashed neighbouring Puducherry as well and Chief Minister V Narayanasamy reviewed the situation. Narayanasamy told reporters at Karaikal that the territorial Government would soon submit a detailed report to the Centre on the losses suffered due to the storm.
Puducherry District Collector Vijay Abhijit Choudhury said a 70-year-old woman in Vanrapet village in town limits sustained head injuries when the wall of a house collapsed last night under the impact of the rain.
