Bhubaneswar: As many as 86 cyclone shelters have been readied to evacuate people from vulnerable and low-lying areas in view of the impending Cyclone Montha, which is likely to impact the city. The helpline number 1929 has been activated to run the control room meant for inter-departmental coordination and addressing complaints from people in distress. The Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) has delegated officers specific tasks to deal with any emergency situation, officials said on Monday.
“We have kept power backup ready and stocked up on essential medicines, including anti-venom. The rapid action team (RAT) has been asked to be on standby. Instructions have been issued to the sanitation wing to clear debris, especially uprooted trees. For the safety of stray cattle, we have reviewed the conditions of cow sheds,” BMC additional commissioner Ratnakar Sahoo said.
While it has directed civic personnel not to take any leave from the date of issue of direction, it has planned for quick evacuation, stocking dry food, activating engineering wings and readying other logistics.
An emergency meeting held in BMC revealed that the personnel have been asked to keep walkie-talkies ready and charged, as power cuts and poor mobile networks may hamper coordination since mobile phones and landlines may not work. Secondly, it has asked officers to keep a sufficient number of generator sets ready to maintain emergency functioning at the BMC office and light up prominent intersections in case there is a prolonged power failure, like during the 2019 Cyclone Fani when multiple generator sets were the only hope.
“Fire services boats will be stationed at vulnerable points. We will coordinate with ODRAF teams for their early positioning at places wherever rescue operations need deft handling. If required, free kitchens will also be set up,” Sahoo added.
BMC has also decided to ask private advertisers to remove hoardings and other display boards. The BMC’s own enforcement squad will also remove the hoardings that have been put up on the roadside. Once the intensity of the cyclonic storm is over, the advertisers can reinstall the hoardings since they pay an advertisement licence fee to the civic body.
In 2019, Cyclone Fani caused massive devastation in the city, almost like the Super Cyclone in 1999 that tore through the capital and coastal districts. Last year, for Cyclone Dana, BMC had activated its control room, but there was hardly any impact on the city.
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