A cyclone of such force had not struck the Bay of Bengal, in India, for 43 years. Only three times in the past century and a half had a hurricane with winds of over 200 kilometres per hour been recorded in the area, according to international press reports. Normally, moreover, phenomena of this kind affect the region in October and November.

Vast areas isolated and without electricity

Cyclone Fani swept across the entire state of Odisha in eastern India over the weekend — a state with a population of 46 million — before moving on to Bangladesh. It left behind a particularly heavy toll in terms of lives lost and material damage: according to the authorities of both countries, at least 42 people have died. Of these, 29 deaths have been confirmed in India.

PIB India ✓ @PIB_India

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The fiery #CycloneFani blows through Puri

444 11 3 mag 2019 · Apri su X →

Thousands of trees and electricity poles were also torn down by the force of the wind. Numerous areas have been without electricity for three days. The roofs of thousands of homes were ripped off, and in Bangladesh at least a thousand dwellings were razed to the ground. Odisha's governor, Naveen Patnaik, announced the dispatch of essential supplies and financial aid to the worst-affected populations.

More than a million people evacuated

Given the strength of the hurricane, the death toll could well have been far worse. It is no coincidence that the United Nations and numerous international experts congratulated New Delhi on its management of the crisis — and in particular on the decision to preventively evacuate 1.2 million people from the highest-risk areas.

UNICEF Italia @UNICEF_Italia

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Il clima cambia e gli eventi estremi si moltiplicano, minacciando i più vulnerabili - i bambini.
Come in Bangladesh, dove in queste ore il #CycloneFani si abbatte sui campi dei profughi #Rohingya: ow.ly/lUVP50tYLfX

7 5 mag 2019 · Apri su X →

Fani made landfall at the coastal city of Puri, home to 200,000 people and famous for the Shree Jagannath temple, one of the most important in the Hindu religion. A witness who had taken shelter in a hotel told the AFP agency that "suddenly everything went black. We couldn't see five metres ahead. Stalls and signs were blown away. The wind was deafening."

ciclone fani india — A satellite image of Cyclone Fani taken from the Emergenza24 Twitter account

The city of Kolkata also affected

The hurricane then moved north-east, losing strength. It reached the city of Kolkata (population 4.5 million) on Friday evening, finding it deserted: the entire population had taken refuge in safe locations. Shops, shopping centres and offices were closed. Transport was at a standstill.

3B Meteo ✓ @3BMeteo

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⚠️Massima #allertameteo in India per landfall del #CycloneFani
La situazione: 3bmeteo.com/giornale-meteo…
#Fani #FaniCyclone #MeteoMondo 🇮🇳

📹Video @Asit5

4 3 mag 2019 · Apri su X →

Here too, the decision to shelter everyone proved lifesaving: one need only recall what happened in October 1999. At that time, India was struck by a super-cyclone whose passage caused the deaths of nearly ten thousand people.

Cyclone Fani brings death and destruction to India and Bangladesh