New Delhi: Cyclone Yaas took landfall North Odisha Coast about 20 km South of Balasore between 10.30 and 11.30 am, with 130-140 km / hr winds and 150 km/ hr gusts. At 1.30 pm it was over North Coastal Odisha, about 15 km Southwest of Balasore.

According to the IMD Cyclone Yaas is likely to move Northwest wards and weaken gradually into a cyclonic storm in the next two hours. The wind speed at the centre of the cyclone at this time is 80-90 km/ hr. Heavy rains are still predicted and fishermen have been advised not to venture out to sea.

Jharkhand is on high alert and officials have begun evacuating people from low-lying areas in vulnerable districts like East and West Singh Bhum. Odisha also remains on high alert.

Cyclone Yaas worst affected districts in Odisha were Balasore, Bhadrak, Jagatsinghpur and Kendrapara. In West Bengal, South and North 24 Paraganas, Digha, East Medinipur and Nandigram on Wednesday, thirteen low-lying areas of Kolkata were flooded.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said one person died in Digha town – he was reportedly dragged out to sea when he tried to catch fish. The coastal town was swamped by waves the height of a double-decker bus, she said.

Over 15 lakh people had been evacuated, three lakh houses damaged and 134 embankments destroyed, she said. High tide in rivers had worsened the impact and an estimated one crore people had been affected, she added.

The state has allotted relief material worth ₹ 10 crore, Chief Minister said. Villagers have been cautioned against going home, with weather reports still predicting strong wind and heavy rain. Bengal suffered extensive damage to agricultural land due to ingress of salt water, fishery, and Animal husbandry and horticulture facilities.

Around 20,000 mud houses and temporary shelters were either destroyed or damaged. I have not seen anything like this before after sea waters inundated low-lying areas in Digha, where a police station was flooded, said Minister.

In Odisha trees have been uprooted in Bhadrak district and some areas have been flooded. The Government has warned people that heavy rains may continue and has urged them to stay indoors. Around 5.8 lakh people were shifted from low-lying areas. Kolkata’s Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport is closed till 7.45 pm.

Bhubaneswar’s Biju Patnaik International Airport is closed till 5 am on Thursday. Veer Surendra Sai Airport in Odisha’s Jharsuguda is shut till 7.45 pm on Thursday. Durgapur and Rourkela airports will stay closed today. Indian Railways has cancelled, till Saturday, passenger trains headed to both Kolkata and southern states.

Naval base INS Chilka is coordinating relief efforts with operations supported by Eastern Naval Command Headquarters in Visakhapatnam. The Army has deployed 17 columns in Bengal. Three columns and an engineering force have been sent to Odisha. The Air Force’s Eastern Command, which is based in Meghalaya, has also moved to help.