Friday, October 25

Cyclone Dana made landfall last night in eastern India, packing winds of over 75 mph and heavy rain.

Dana began as a weak tropical cyclone in the Bay of Bengal, slowly moving northwest towards India as it strengthened. It began approaching the coast with winds of 60 mph, but those winds soon strengthened to 75 mph before landfall-- the equivalent of a Category 1 hurricane in the Atlantic.

The storm made landfall in the eastern state of Odisha last night in the municipality of Jagatsinghpur, which is home to around 1.13 million people. It also heavily impacted the nearby municipalities of Puri (280,000 people), Kendrapara (1.44 million), Cuttack (865,000 people), and Khordha (2.25 million), the latter of which is also home to the state's capital, Bhubaneswar. However, the entire state of Odisha was hit hard, along with the neighboring state of West Bengal, which is home to the 15.5 million-person city of Kolkata. As of 2011, Odisha's population was around 42 million people, while West Bengal's population was around 91 million. However, adjusting to today's estimations, the corresponding populations would be around 48 million and 103 million, respectively.

25 years ago, the same area was hit by an unnamed cyclone equivalent to the strength of a Category 5 hurricane, bringing howling winds of over 160 mph to Odisha and West Bengal, killing over 10,000 people. While the states were devastated at the time, they are more prepared this time around.

Over one million people were evacuated ahead of the storm, and all public transportation services were temporarily suspended. Over 100 trains were canceled due to the storm-- poorer regions of India primarily use trains to travel from town to town. Airports, schools, and many businesses were closed as well, including Kolkata's Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport and Bhubaneswar's Biju Patnaik International Airport. Officials told media that they had set up over 5,000 camps to evacuate citizens from vulnerable regions, as much of eastern India's coast is extremely low-lying and very susceptible to flooding.

Widespread totals of 2-4 inches are expected, with localized higher totals-- up to 8 inches. While the wind will cause damage, the rain is the largest issue, causing flash flooding and possibly sparking landslides in hillier regions.

Tropical Storm Trami also battered the Philippines on Wednesday, bringing heavy rain to the country's largest and most populous island of Luzon.

Trami began in the western Pacific as a tropical depression and quickly moved westward, strengthening extremely slowly in cool waters. As it approached the Philippines, it took a turn northward, moving towards Luzon.

It made landfall midday Wednesday, bringing heavy rain to the island. Flooding trapped people on roofs and in cars, and some people were forced to get around using boats. The storm dumped around 8 inches of rain across the island of Luzon, including the Philippine capital of Manila, home to 1.85 million people, and its twin city of Quezon City, home to over 3.2 million people. In total, Manila's metropolitan area is home to a staggering 25 million people. Reports showed that flooding in some areas had exceeded 10 feet after rivers had overflowed, filling villages and towns with muddy, brackish water.

Schools and offices were closed ahead of the landfall, and thousands of people were evacuated from vulnerable areas. A large portion of Luzon is extremely low-lying, making it susceptible to flooding, while the other part of the island is more mountainous, making it susceptible to dangerous landslides and mudslides. A total of one person is dead so far, but seven others are missing, and the death toll is expected to rise in the coming days.

Thankfully, Trami moved relatively fast, and it is now headed west towards southern Vietnam. However, due to winds and ocean currents, the storm is expected to turn back before making a second landfall, fizzling out in the South China Sea.

Fact of the Day (Reader's Digest): Only 5% of all baby mammals are raised by both parents-- the other 95% are raised by only the female parent.

Quote of the Day (Gracious Quotes): There’s always someone smarter than you, better than you, faster than you. You just have to work. (Joe Louis)

Word of the Day (Merriam-Webster): Garnish (verb)- To garnish food or drink is to add decorative and tasty touches to it, such as a spiral of lemon peel.

In a Sentence: Aditi likes to garnish her mashed potatoes with chives and a dollop of sour cream.