Details of Disaster Information


India : Tropical Cyclone : 1999/10/28
GLIDE: ST-1999-000425-IND  DRR & Disaster Information

Duration 1999/10/28
Country
   or
District
India
Name Tropical Cyclone
Outline The cyclone originated in the Bay of Bengal hit the east India.
The death toll in a giant cyclone that tore across eastern India could run into thousands. Windspeeds of 150 to 160 miles per hour were measured in Bhubaneshwar, capital of Orissa state.

Headline(Source, Date)
Personal Injury Material Damage Others
OCHA Situation Report No.10 1999/11/15
According to the Natural Disaster Management (NDM) Control Room at the Ministry of Agriculture, Central Government of India, the death toll now stands at 9,465 and the affected population totals 12.625 million. The affected crop area totals 1.603 million hectares.
All state roads and major district roads have become operational in all the affected districts except Jagatsinghpur and Kendrapara.
It is reported that almost all the hand pumps are in operation.
Essential power supply to Bhubaneshwar, Khurda, Cuttack and Puri has been repaired. However, supply to consumers is only partly restored due to extensive damage to distribution lines.
OCHA Situation Report No.9 1999/11/10
The Government of India has just released a death toll figure of 7,474. This increase relates to the discovery of thousands of bodies in coastal areas as flood waters recede. 90 - 100 % loss of crop is reported in the affected districts, as the cyclone hit at the most vulnerable time for paddy crop. The next harvest period would be in April-May 2000. A serious shortage of essential food items in the affected districts is evident.
About 11,000 local schools have been badly damaged/destroyed. Some of the remaining schools are being used as shelter for the homeless.
Over 1.5 million shelters are urgently required. The usefulness of bringing tents from abroad is highly questionable, as tents are not normally used here. Plastic sheets (or similar materials) are recommended. Light blankets are also needed.
Assets such as boats and tree plantations, which will take many years to restore, have been lost. Signs of migration out of the affected districts are already reported.
Due to large-scale inundation, there is a widespread contamination of drinking water sources. Outbreaks of diarrhoeal diseases are already being reported in spite of enormous preventive measures.. Safe drinking water is a serious problem, as there is no electric power, many hand pumps are damaged and numerous wells, tanks, ponds and canals are polluted. Sanitary conditions have seriously worsened, due to waterlogging and extensive damage to sewerage systems.
Cattle deaths are very significant. Milk cows are lost as a source of income and food, and bullocks - as means to plough the land.
CNN News 1999/11/04 13:45GMT
The toll could reach 10,000 to 20,000. Some officials said 799 deaths had been confirmed so far. A relief commissioner told that they have received the most bodies from Jagatsinghpur district where is about 40 kilometers (25 miles) east of Bhubaneshwar, the capital of Orissa state.

Officials said it will take a month to fully restore power, weeks to repair the phone system, and days to fix roads.
The economic damage could be in the billions of dollars.
OCHA Situation Report No.6 1999/11/04
8.2 million people have been affected and the officially reported confirmed number of casualties stands at 426. However, according to unofficial newspaper reports, the number of casualties may be significantly higher. 275,000 houses have been destroyed and 323,000 hectares of crops have been damaged. 600 government buildings and 1,200 school buildings have been destroyed/damaged in Jagatsinghpur alone
IFRC Report 1999/11/01
It is feared that thousands of people may have died. Thousands of families in desperate need of shelter, blankets, food and medicine.
Vast areas of land in Ganjam, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Puri and Bhubaneshwar districts are now under water. The storm ripped through hundreds of thousands of houses in Orissa State, devastated crops and tore down power lines.
OCHA Situation Report No.3 1999/11/01
According to information released by the Government and by UNDP in India, more than ten million people, that is about one third of the population, have been affected in eight districts of the state of Orissa. Thousands of houses, uprooted trees and snapped telecommunication and power lines were destroyed.The worst affected districts are Kendrapara, Jagatsinghpur, Khurda, Puri and Cuttack. Paradip port has been completely devastated. The industrial town of Cuttack has been severely damaged and the cyclone wiped out crops along a 140-kilometer stretch of the coast. Many villages in the path of the cyclone have been totally submerged. It is reported that the entire coastal region is still without electricity and potable water. The Government reported that telephone lines had been partially restored in Orissa.
CNN News 1999/10/31 11:02GMT
At least 14 villages in the immediate area of Baleshwar were totally submerged, villagers said. 15,000 people were taking shelter in one college building in the city. As many as 15 million people live in the stricken area and millions among them may be displaced, the administrator said. The senior administrator of Baleshwar district, said the cyclone devastated Paradwip port, severely damaged the industrial town of Cuttack, demolished a steel plant and wiped out crops along a 140-kilometer (85-mile) coastal area.
The cyclone roared into Orissa state from the Bay of Bengal Friday, just 12 days after another cyclone devastated the same region and killed more than 100 people.
BBC News 1999/10/31 06:49GMT
In total, about 10 million people have been affected by the storm, which generated winds of over 250km/h (160mph).
Many towns and villages remain completely cut off and large tracts of coastline are still under water. Officials say 1.5 million are homeless.
The cyclone ripped through the port town of Paradwip, then moved on to Bhubaneshwar, 90km (55 miles) from the coast. It destroyed road, rail and air links and toppled communications lines.
From Orissa, there have been reports of looting by hungry villagers.
CNN News 1999/10/30 15:56 GMT
The death toll in a giant cyclone that tore across eastern India could run into thousands Between 200,000 to 300,000 houses had been damaged.
The full extent of the damage could not be assessed because roads were closed and telephones and electricity were out.

Related Links
Report/Articles
Geographycal Data Information
Emergency Relief Information
  • OCHA-Geneva Contributions Report

  • OCHA Situation Report No.5 1999/11/03

  • OCHA Situation Report No.4 1999/11/02
    1,977 villages in 10 districts have been severely affected.
    So far, the measures had been taken by the Indian Government are: the provision of 500 tonnes of food items, 500 tonnes of life saving drugs and 50 tonnes of other medical supplies; Transport of food items from Vizag in Andhra Pradesh to Paradip port in Orissa; Arranged air transport of 400,000 halogen tablets from Calcutta; The deployment of 3 medical teams from Delhi.
    The Air Force and the Navy are also engaged in the provision and transportation of their stock to Orissa including airdropping operations.
    IFRC has launched its emergency appeal seeking CHF 4,300,000 (approx. USD 2,810,000) in cash, kind and services to assist 50,000 families for 3 months. IFRC is also contributing CHF 200,000 (approx. USD 131,000) from its Disaster Relief Emergency Fund for the operation in Orissa.

  • IFRC Report 1999/11/01
    The International Federation of Red Cross and Crescent Societies today appealed for four million Swiss francs to provide vital aid to the thousands of people left homeless and without livelihoods by the devastating cyclone.
    Disaster relief experts from Delhi and Dhaka are already in Orissa with the Indian Red Cross assessing what is needed.
    Teams of Indian Red Cross volunteers, sent to help after the first cyclone, are currently working with local authorities to distribute emergency food, clothing and shelter materials to the latest victims.
  • OCHA Situation Report No.3 1999/11/01
    The Prime Minister has declared the disaster in Orissa as a national calamity. The federal Government has promised a grant of 3 billion rupees (approx. USD 69.284 million).
    Also the Government issued special orders to the states and public sector units to come to Orissa to help, deployed teams of railway and Ministry of Surface Transport officers as well as several engineers, to restore rail, road and other communication links and deployed teams of doctors. Also deployed are 1 IL76 plane and 6 MI helicopters to air drop food and other essential items. Satellite telephone sets, portable generators and other specialized items were supplied. The army is sending personnel, including infantry battalions, engineers with bridging equipment and flat-bottomed boats, and signal detachments. A field medical unit comprising 30 ambulances and 340 doctors and paramedics has left for Orissa. A unit of 2,000 soldiers is already in the region.
    OCHA has released an emergency grant of USD 50,000 for local purchase of relief items.
Urgent Report from Supporting Members of the Asian Disaster Reduction Center