Severe cyclonic storm ‘Nisarga’ – the second to hit India in two weeks – led to heavy rainfall in some districts of Maharashtra on Wednesday, 3 June, with at least two deaths being reported in the state.
Late on Wednesday, the India Meteorological Department said, “Severe cyclonic storm ‘Nisarga’ weakens into a cyclonic storm over coastal Maharashtra. Light to moderate rainfall at most places, heavy to very heavy falls at isolated places very likely in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh during the next 24 hours.”
The cyclone had made landfall on the Maharashtra coast near Alibag at around 1 pm. Nisarga is the first such storm in a long time to impact an already coronavirus-hit Mumbai which has recorded over 41,000 COVID-19 cases out of around 70,000 cases in the state.
It impacted some areas in Mumbai, with a trees being uprooted, but on the whole, the impact on the city was not as severe as it was expected to be.
Deaths Reported in Raigad, Pune
A 58-year-old man died after an electric pole fell on him in Alibag area of Raigad, the district collector said, reported ANI. In another incident, a 65-year-old woman died and five of her family members were injured in an incident of wall collapse in Pune district.
Earlier in the day, three members of a family were injured when cement blocks from an adjacent under-construction building fell on their shanty at Santacruz in Mumbai due to gusty winds, the police said.
In an order on Tuesday, the police had prohibited anyone to come out in public places like beaches, parks and promenades along the Mumbai coastline. No arrivals and departures were allowed at Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport from 2:30 pm on Wednesday till evening.
As the cyclone made inroads in Maharashtra, visuals of roofs being blown away in Raigad surfaced online.
Alibag reported a wind speed of 93 km per hour on Wednesday afternoon. The tropical storm was expected to have wind speeds in excess of 100 km per hour, with gusts up to 120 km per hour.
Forty-three teams of National Disaster Response Force or NDRF had been deployed in areas expected to be affected along Maharashtra and Gujarat coasts. One NDRF team consists of 45 personnel.
40,000 People Evacuated Along the Coast in Mumbai
Over 40,000 people living near the sea coast in Mumbai had been shifted to safer places, reported PTI. Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday had appealed to the people of the state to “stay indoors for two days.”
NDRF DG, SN Pradhan had also posted visuals from Sanpada, Navi Mumbai, and other places, of trees being uprooted in several places.
Goa also experienced heavy rains and gusty winds since Wednesday morning. There were also reports of flooding in some low-lying areas, according to PTI.
This was the first cyclone to hit India’s financial capital in many years. The IMD Diector General stated, “The last severe cyclonic storm to hit near Mumbai was in 1961”.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)