Odisha: Fire service teams with rescue ready for cyclone Lehar

Bhubaneswar: Ahead of the very severe cyclonic storm Lehar making landfall near Machilipatanam in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh tomorrow, Odisha government today deployed fire service teams with rescue gear in southern districts. The collectors of the southern and western districts were alerted and fire service inits in Ganjam, Gajapati, Koraput, Rayagada, Malkangiri and Nabarangpur districts deployed to meet any eventuality during the cyclone and rains, Special Relief Commissioner P K Mohapatra said. [caption id=“attachment_1253987” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File picture of Phailin. AP [/caption] The 10-member team was equipped with rescue gear and cutting gear, he said. 31 personnel were kept on standby in Ganjam district and 20 in Gajapati district, he said. District control rooms were activated and the Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force asked to remain ready to move to at short notice, if required, he said. Mohapatra said farmers were advised to keep harvested paddy under cover to avoid loss or damage from rain. The latest IMD forecast said that the very severe cyclonic would move west-northweswards and cross the Andhra Pradesh coast near Machilipatnam tomorrow afternoon. Under its influence, rain or thunder shower might occur at one or two places over south Odisha in the next 24 hours. Surface wind speeds reaching 30 to 40 kmph gusting to 50 kmph would prevail along and off the coast during the next 24 hours. As the sea condition would be moderate to rough along and off the coast, Mohapatra said fishermen were advised not to sail into sea. PTI