INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
An extreme cyclonic storm pounded Indias eastern coast on Friday, uprooting trees, snapping power lines and swamping some areas, authorities
stated, including that no deaths or injuries were reported.Cyclone Dana made landfall in Odisha state around midnight with wind speeds of
100-110 kmph (62-68 mph), gusting approximately 120 kph (75 mph), and is expected to weaken into a cyclonic storm by forenoon, the weather
condition department said.Odisha had closed schools, suspended flights to and from its capital city of Bhubaneswar till Friday early
morning, and left over half a million individuals in anticipation of the storm.We do not have any reports of damage to life or residential
or commercial property, just damage to trees
Power in the affected area will be restored by late afternoon, said Dilip Routrai, administrative chief of the area where the cyclone made
landfall.Heavy rainfall likewise lashed parts of the neighbouring state of West Bengal and, accompanied by a rise in the sea water, left low
lying locations swamped, damaging the standing paddy crop that was nearly ready for harvest in some fields.Winter veggies also perished in
large farming systems because of heavy rains and storm surge of the sea water that entered lots of areas in the Sunderbans belt, stated
Bankim Hazra, minister for Sunderban Affairs.Flight operations resumed on Friday morning at the airports in Bhubaneswar and the West Bengal
capital Kolkata, where too they were suspended considering that Thursday evening.Severe storms pummel the coasts of India and neighbouring
Bangladesh during the cyclone season from April to December each year, harming both life and property.Odisha saw its worst cyclone in the
last few years in 1999, which raved for 30 hours and eliminated 10,000 people.Source: Reuters-- Agencies
