Cyclone Nisarga makes landfall

STORM WEAKENS Severe cyclonic storm hits Maharashtra coast near Alibag with wind speeds of 120 kmph, Mumbai escapes the worst

MUMBAI/NEW DELHI: India’s financial capital Mumbai appeared to have escaped the worst after the severe cyclonic storm ‘Nisarga’ weakened following its landfall near Mumbai, a city that’s emerged as the country’s hot spot for the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak.

Cyclone Nisarga crossed the coast near Alibag in neighbouring Raigad district with wind speeds as high as 120 kilometres per hour, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). It was moving northeastwards and away from the city of Mumbai, the weather office said in a statement. The city reported winds of about 15 kilometres an hour at some places.

Mumbai and its surrounding areas are usually sheltered from cyclones — the last deadly storm to hit the city was in 1948 — but authorities evacuated at least 100,000 people, including coronavirus patients, from flood-prone areas in the states of Maharashtra and Gujarat.

“It landed a little (further) south than what we predicted. But Mumbai may experience bad weather until tomorrow [Thursday],” Madhavan Rajeevan, secretary at the ministry of earth sciences, said.

In the hours before the storm hit the shores, drivers and peddlers deserted the iconic Marine Drive, fishermen yanked their nets out of the Arabian Sea and police cleared people away from the beaches.

As the cyclone wended its way up the western coast, homes in city slums were boarded up and abandoned, and municipal officials patrolled the streets, using bullhorns to order people to stay inside.

The cyclone then crossed Maharashtra’s coast, with its path veering to the east of Mumbai and its power expected to weaken by Wednesday night, meteorologists said.

“The cyclone will further weaken into a cyclonic storm by evening and into a deep depression by late night,” the IMD bulletin said.

There were no reports of casualties till this newspaper went to press. However, officials said three members of a family were injured when cement blocks fell on their shanty from under-construction building in suburban Santacruz due to gusty winds.

At the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) camp between Alibag and Murud, highspeed winds with a maximum level of 110kmph were recorded after the cyclone moved over the region, said the forces’ inspector Mahesh Kumar.

Kumar added that around 2pm, the wind speed came down to 85-90kmph, according to information by the state India Meteorological Department (IMD).

Even as the city’s residents breathed a sigh of relief, forecasters warned the storm could still