Cyclone Dana tracker: Odisha-Bengal to face storm on Fri; schools shut, trains cancelled, rescue teams ready | 10 points

Cyclone Dana alert: Odisha and West Bengal governments have begun evacuating people from areas vulnerable to the impending cyclone. Indian Coast Guard, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), and other forces have also begun preparing to ensure ‘zero casualties’ because of cyclone Dana, likely to make landfall on Friday, October 25.

Meanwhile, all schools have been shut in multiple Odisha and Bengal districts till Friday, October 25. In the wake of the impending cyclone, nearly 150 trains have been cancelled with many at risk of diversion due to harsh weather conditions. Here are all the top updates due on Cyclone Dana approaching Odisha-West Bengal coast.

Cyclone Dana Top Ten updates

-All schools in multiple districts of Odisha and West Bengal will remain shut for the next three to four days due to the impending cyclone. In West Bengal, the state government has announced a holiday till October 26 in schools and academic institutions in multiple districts, including South 24 Parganas, North 24 Parganas, Purba Medinipur, Paschim Medinipur, Jhargram, Bankura, Hooghly, Howrah, and Kolkata.

-The Odisha government has also announced school and college holidays till October 25 in fourteen districts, including Angul, Puri, Nayagarh, Khordha, Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Jajpur, Bhadrak, Balasore, Keonjhar, Dhenkanal, Ganjam and Mayurbhanj.

-The deep depression over the Bay of Bengal has been intensified into a cyclonic storm on Wednesday morning and is heading towards Odisha-Bengal coast. Cyclone Dana is likely to make landfall near Puri and Sagar Islands on Friday, October 25.

-Fire brigade teams, NDRF personnel, Indian Army, Navy and Air Force is working in sync to prepare for the upcoming cyclone and attain zero casualty in Odisha and Bengal.

-In Mamata Banerjee-led Bengal, fire brigade teams have been deployed at 85 stations across the state. Out of them 11 teams will be in South Kolkata, eight in North Kolkata, 12 in South 24 Parganas, 24 in North 24 Parganas, six in Howrah, four in West Medinipur, and five in East Medinipur, said West Bengal Fire and Emergency Services Minister Sujit Bose.

- Trains and aeroplane functions have also been affected due to the approaching Cyclone Dana. Nearly 200 trains have been cancelled so far in Odisha and West Bengal. Moreover, there is also a possibility of train diversions over the next two days due to cyclone. According to media reports, the East Coast Railway (ECoR) cancelled 197 trains from October 23.

-For the convenience of railway passengers, ECoR has also activated a round-the-clock Disaster Management Cell at its headquarters at Rail Sadan, as well as at Divisional headquarters in Khurda Road, Visakhapatnam, and Sambalpur. These teams are dedicated to the early restoration of train services and railway infrastructure should they be affected by the cyclone.

-The impending Cyclone Dana, is likely to impact nearly half the population of Odisha and a major chunk of area of neighbouring state West Bengal. According to news agencies ANI and PTI, the state government is planning to relocate nearly 10 lakh people from 3,000 villages in 14 districts to relief camps.

-The Indian Coast Guard said it was on high alert and had mobilised its vessels and aircraft to respond swiftly to any contingency owing to the cyclone that will bring torrential rain in the two neighbouring states.