Cyclone PHAILIN Carves a Path of Destruction

Coastal Towns Deserted as Deadly PHAILIN Rips into eastern India

Cyclone PHAILIN made landfall as a Cat 4A typhoon with winds of about 220km/h near Gopalpur, Odisha state, at about 15:45UTC, as initially forecast by FIRE-EARTH.

The deadly cyclone had claimed at least a dozen lives, leveling homes, all be it mud huts, uprooting trees and utility posts, and leaving hundreds of towns and villages deserted.

An estimated 600,000 to more than 3 million people were either evacuated, some forcefully because they feared losing belongings, or fled their homes to higher grounds.

More than 12 million people were in the deadly cyclone’s path, which was expected to generate storm surges of at least 3.5 meters.

The small town of Gopalpur, Odisha [formerly Orissa,] has an average elevation of less than 1 meter.

Unsurprisingly, storm surges have pushed water ore than 500 meters inland in Gopalpur and the surrounding low-lying areas, according to local reports.

A BBC reporter, Andrew North, has described the damage as “a scene of apocalyptic devastation” in the city of Brahmapur, near where the cyclone made landfall.

A storm surge of more than 3m high has inundated areas of Ganjam, Khurda, Puri and Jagatsinghpur districts of Orissa and the Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh, reported the Times of India.

PHAILIN will dump at least 25cm on Odisha [Orissa] and the northern parts of Andhra Pradesh through Monday, forecasters said.

The massive amounts of rain can lead to widespread flooding throughout the region.

“We will assess after the cyclone eases … even now the cyclone is on,” said Odisha’s chief secretary. “There has been pretty severe devastation in Brahmapur town.”

Typhoons NARI and WIPHA

Meantime, the outer bands of Typhoon NARI crossed central Vietnam, and WIPHA, this year’s 26th typhoon, continued to intensify over northwest Pacific.

(1-3) Typhoons PHAILIN, NARI and WIPHA at 03:00UTC on October 13, 2013. Source MTSAT-2 via Digital-Typhoon. Enhanced by FIRE-EARTH.

more details to follow….

Related Links

• PHAILIN: A Perfect Super Cyclone October 12, 2013
• Millions Flee Monster Cyclone PHAILIN October 11, 2013
• PHAILIN Becomes a Super Cyclonic Storm October 11, 2013
• Massive Cyclone Drifting Towards E India October 10, 2013
• FEWW New Hurricane Scale
• Satellite Imagery
• FEWW New Hurricane Scale
• Satellite Imagery

Massive Cyclone Drifting Towards E India

Cyclone PHAILIN Intensifying in The Bay of Bengal

PHAILIN is forecast to make landfall with sustained winds of about 180km/hr,  the equivalent of Cat 3A hurricane force.

Cyclone PHAILIN Position 

• Time: 12:00UTC on October 10, 2013
• Movement: NW – 325 degrees
• Position: Near 15.2ºN, 89.8ºE
• Max Sustained Winds: 130km/hr
• Max Wind Gust: 160km/hr
• Landfall Location:  (19.27°N, 84.92°E ±25km) Near Gopalpur (elev. 1m, pop: 15,000), Odisha, India
  
• Source: FIRE-EARTH, JTWC and others

PHAILIN could intensify to a super storm—FIRE-EARTH

Cyclone PHAILIN. VIS/IR Satellite Image recorded at 11:30UTC on October 10, 2013. Source: CIMSS/SSEC/WISC. FIRE-EARTH Enhancement.

Cyclone PHAILIN Projected Path as of 11:30UTC on October 10, 2013. Source: CIMSS/SSEC/WISC.

[NOTE: Google is not listing most of the images posted on FIRE-EARTH, or delay listing them for several days until they’ve lost their immediate relevance. Editor]

Related Links

• FEWW New Hurricane Scale
• Satellite Imagery