NEWS

Cyclone Mekunu hits the coastal areas; PM Modi tweets

The tropical cyclone that hit Yemen and slowly moved to Gulf is now wreaking havoc in India.

The powerful tropical cyclone Mekunu hit coastal parts of Karnataka on Tuesday, flooding Mangaluru and Udupi. Strong winds uprooted trees and blew light structures off their hinges in several towns and villages in coastal Karnataka.

Coastal Karnataka is likely to receive more rain today, the weather office has said.

As heavy rain pounded Mangaluru, 375 kilometres from Bengaluru, and water started stagnating on the streets and entering buildings, some schoolchildren went home on orange inflatable boats escorted by disaster management volunteers in their bright yellow helmets. Shopkeepers downed their shutters amid the downpour. Many vehicles that tried to wade through the water got stuck; the drivers left them and walked on.

HD Kumaraswamy took stock of the situation, directing the district administration to take Coast Guard’s help to rescue people and ordered that necessary precautionary steps be to prevent loss of lives, the Chief Minister’s Office said.

The private water forecaster Skymet has predicted that cyclone Mekunu may hit Kerala in a day or two. It has already made landfall in southern Oman and Yemen, carrying winds reaching up to 185 kmph and killing seven people in Yemen.

On Tuesday, teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) fanned out across Mangaluru to help stranded people reach home safely. The home ministry has told the NDRF to be on standby for bigger relief operations and if needed, more teams will be sent to coastal Karnataka.

Schools and colleges will remain shut today in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi, the deputy commissioners of both districts have ordered. Students of a Mangaluru school who could not get out on time as the water level rose were taken away on inflatable boats by fire service personnel.

READ ALSO: Cyclone lashes Oman results power failures and three died and 40 missing

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a five-day three-nation tour of ASEAN members, after reaching Jakarta late on Tuesday evening tweeted that he has asked the authorities to ensure all possible help to the affected areas in Karnataka.

Former Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa, too, tweeted:

Water entered factories at the Baikampady industrial area. The factory owners said they could run into big losses. Mangaluru and Bantwal taluks were the worst affected.

In Udupi, a banyan tree fell on the road at Udyavar, blocking traffic. The strong winds also knocked down electric poles and hoardings. Some 130 buildings were damaged in Udupi district, people familiar with the matter said.

The heavy rain in the coast was due to well-marked low pressure over the south-east Arabian Sea, off the coast of Karnataka and north Kerala, and also due to the onset of monsoon in Kerala, the weather office has said.

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