While the images of trouble caused by Phailin, a cyclone that hit Jharkhand last year, is yet to fade from people's memory another storm-'Hudhud'— is staring at the State with consequences which cannot be been estimated exactly. However, the Government seemed to have learnt a lesson and issued advisories for people to mitigate the damage likely as a result of the storm.
Interestingly, the advisory has been issued to control panic among people about the potential devastation and also to counter rumours about the large scale devastation in the State due to passing 'Hudhud'. "This is not at all a disaster. Whole thing has been blown out of proportion. The cyclone is only likely to result in rainfall which will be slightly above the normal level," said State coordinator of Disaster Management, Colonel SK Shrivastava.
The impact in Jharkhand is likely to be limited and only southern parts of the State will be affected because of the passing storm. As per the predictions of Ranchi office of Indian Meteorological Department, southern parts especially West Singhbhum will experience gusty winds accompanied by rain.
Keeping in view the predictions of the IMD and ripple effect of 'Hudhud', the Disaster Management department warned people to exercise caution. The advisory requested people to not venture out of their houses, not stand under a tree and dilapidated building, to stay away from dams, rivers and drains besides switching off electronic equipments and electrical appliances.
Hudhud as the name has been given to the raging storm in the Bay of Bengal is heading towards the coastal areas of India-Andhra and Odisha-and will hit shoreline today at a speed of about 160-170 kmph. The storm is likely to take Jharkhand in its grip by October 13 although with less magnitude. It is likely to mellow down and will not wreak havoc as imagined.
"It will lose fair amount of speed after hitting the ground and will come down to 80-90 kmph in first six hours of the impact. It is likely to hit Jharkhand at a speed of about 15-20 kmph," added the State coordinator of Disaster Management department.
Despite the brave posturing by Disaster Management authorities, the IMD is keeping its fingers crossed about the track of 'Hudhud' and is keeping close eyes on the storm. According to meteorological department it is premature to guess the track that the storm is going to follow and how far Jharkhand will be away from the eye of the storm to press the alert button. The storm will result in rainfall on 60-70mm in Jharkhand with the southern likely to see heavy to very heavy rainfall.
"It is still in the sea. Once it hits the shoreline (near Visakhapatnam) then only we can map its exact track. We are in constant touch with the department of disaster management. We will share inputs with them," said Forecast Officer at IMD Ranchi, U Shrivastava. Meanwhile, district administration of Bokaro and lohardaga held meetings to chart course of action and suggested steps to be taken should the storm hit the districts with all might.