Cyclone Tauktae leaves behind trail of destruction
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and his Gujarat counterpart Vijay Rupani on Tuesday discussed the impact of cyclone Tauktae, which made landfall in the neighbouring state late in the night a day earlier.
On its way to Gujarat, the cyclone brought heavy rain accompanied by gusty winds in Mumbai and other coastal districts of Maharashtra, resulting in the death of seven persons and damage to property.
Cyclone Tauktae: Highlights
10:30 pm: It is very likely to move north-northeastwards and weaken gradually into a Depression during the next 12 hours. Remnant of the system is very likely to move further northeastwards across Rajasthan to west Uttar Pradesh during May 19 & 20: IMD
10 pm: Cyclone Tauktae over Gujarat region moved north-northeastwards with speed during past 6 hours, weakened into Deep Depression & lay centred at 8:30 pm today, over Gujarat region, about 60 km north-northeast of Ahmedabad: India Meteorological Department (IMD)
6 pm: Navy, Coast Guard rescue 314 people from two barges
Battling extreme weather, the Indian Navy and Coast Guard have so far rescued 314 people on board two barges that went adrift in the Arabian Sea near Mumbai hours before Cyclone Tauktae made landfall on the Gujarat coast, an official said on Tuesday.
Three barges and an oil rig with 611 personnel on board had gone adrift on Monday. These included accommodation barge P305 with 273 persons, cargo barge GAL Constructor with 137 personnel on board, accommodation barge SS-3 with 196 personnel on board and the Sagar Bhushan oil rig with 101 personnel on board, a Navy official said.
While all the 137 people on board the cargo barge GAL Constructor have been rescued, 177 of the 273 onboard P305 have been rescued so far, the official said.
5 pm: 3 dead, 10 injured in Mumbai
Cyclonic storm Tauktae claimed three lives and left 10 others injured in Mumbai over the last 24 hours when it passed close to the city coast, civic officials said on Tuesday.
The sea here has been very rough due to the impact of the cyclone and the huge tidal waves on Monday dumped tonnes of garbage at chowpatties, Marine Drive and the iconic Gateway of India in Mumbai, they said.
4:20 pm: Wall, footpath near Gateway of India damaged
Cyclonic storm Tauktae damaged a sea-facing safety wall and iron gates near the iconic Gateway of India here and some jetty stones in the vicinity also got dislodged due to its impact, civic officials said on Tuesday.
The main structure of the historic monument did not suffer any damage, but a portion of the footpath near it caved-in, they said.
Huge tidal waves in the Arabian Sea threw heaps of garbage at the monument, which is a major tourist attraction, as the cyclonic storm passed close to the Mumbai coast on Monday, they said.
3:15 pm: Tauktae batters Raigad again
Raigad district in Maharashtra bore the brunt of nature's fury for the second year in a row when cyclonic storm Tauktae passed close to the Konkan coast, killing four persons in separate incidents and damaging many houses, officials said on Tuesday.
Last June, severe cyclonic storm Nisarga had caused widescale damage in this coastal district, located about 100 km away from Mumbai. The four fatalities on Monday occurred in the incidents of falling of a tree and collapse of a wall in Uran and Roha.
2:30 pm: Rajasthan receives rains triggered by cyclone
Several areas in Rajasthan recorded light to moderate rainfall triggered by cyclone Tauktae during the last 24 hours, IMD officials said on Tuesday, adding that heavy rainfall is likely on Wednesday.
Bhilwara recorded the maximum of 50 mm rainfall followed by Chittorgarh which received 25 mm rainfall, as per the India Meteorological Department (IMD). According to the Met department, Dabok received 20. 6 mm rainfall, Vanasthali 20 mm, Sawai Madhopur 16 mm, Bundi 14 mm and Ajmer 11. 8 mm rainfall in the past 24 hours.
1:15 pm: Tauktae to turn to a deep depression by evening
According to IMD, extremely severe cyclone Tauktae will turn to a depression in next three hours by evening. Rainfall expected in several districts of Gujarat, Rajasthan, other areas.
12:25 pm: Navy in rescue mission
The Navy on Tuesday morning also deployed the P-8I long-range, multimission maritime patrol aircraft to join the search and rescue operations, the official said.
Another barge, the 'Gal Constructor' with 137 persons onboard has run aground about 48 nautical miles north of Colaba Point, he said. An Emergency Towing Vessel 'Water Lily', two support vessels and CGS Samrat are in the vicinity for rendering assistance and evacuation of crew, he added.
"INS Talwar has proceeded to assist another oil rig Sagar Bhushan with 101 personnel on board and an accommodation barge SS-3 with 196 personnel on board, both of which are adrift and presently located about 50 NM South East of Pipavav Port," the spokesperson said in a statement.
12 pm: Navy rescues 177 from barge
Battling extreme weather, the Indian Navy has so far rescued 177 people on board a barge that went adrift in the Arabian Sea near Mumbai hours before Cyclone Tauktae made landfall on the Gujarat coast, an official said on Tuesday.
Navy ships were deployed on Monday after receipt of a request for assistance for barge 'P305' adrift off Heera oil fields in Bombay high area with 273 personnel on board. The oil fields are around 70 km southwest of Mumbai.
Sixty persons on board the barge were rescued till 11 pm and the remaining overnight, the official said, adding a Navy helicopter brought three rescuees to INS Shikra this morning.
11:45 am: 3 lost lives in Gujarat, says CM Vijay Rupani
Three people have lost their lives in Gujarat due to Tauktae cyclone. Around 40,000 trees have fallen and 16,500 huts affected in the state, news agency ANI quoted CM Vijay Rupani, as saying.
11:15 am: 6 dead in Maharashtra
Six persons were killed in Maharashtra's Konkan region in separate incidents related to the severe cyclonic storm and three sailors remained missing after two boats sank in the sea earlier in the day, as per official.
10:55 am: 8 lost lives in Karnataka
Eight people have lost their lives so far in the cyclone Tauktae-hit coastal and surrounding Malnad districts of Karnataka, officials said on Monday.
According to a situation report by Karnataka State Disaster Management Authority officials, till this evening, 121 villages in seven districts of Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Uttara Kannada, Kodagu, Chikkamagaluru, Hassan and Belagavi have been affected by the cyclone.
Among the 121 villages affected, a maximum of 48
are from Uttara Kannada district.
10:40 am: Navy rescues 60 from barge adrift near Mumbai
The Indian Navy has rescued 60 people on board a barge that went adrift in the Arabia Sea near Mumbai hours before a very severe cyclonic storm with winds gusting up to 185 km per hour made landfall on the Gujarat coast, an official said on Tuesday.
The Navy had deployed three of its frontline warships after receiving messages to rescue 410 people on board two barges off the Mumbai coast on Monday.
The ships deployed to extend assistance to the two barges were INS Kolkata, INS Kochi and INS Talwar.
10:35 am: Red alert issued in Rajasthan districts
The cyclone Tauktae has affected Rajasthan also, the MET department has issued and alert for four days in the state, while red alert has been issued for the next two days for the south and south-western districts.
Several districts of the state- Sirohi, Dungarpur, Banswada, Bheelwada, Kota has received heavy rainfall due to cyclone.
10:25 am: 4 dead, Tauktae leaves behind trail of destruction
Four people were killed in Gujarat as cyclone Tauktae pounded parts of the state and left behind a trail of destruction along the western coast, officials said on Tuesday.
The landfall process of the eye of the extremely severe cyclonic storm Tauktae, which hit the Gujarat coast in Saurashtra region between Diu and Una, ended around midnight, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said. It crossed the Gujarat coast as an "extremely severe cyclonic storm" and gradually weakened.
- With PTI and ANI inputs
