From Laila to Vardah, cyclones that have hit India in recent times

New Delhi, December 12

As cyclone Vardah started making landfall in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh on Monday, it is expected to weaken with sustained winds of 80 to 90 kmph. Here are the cyclones that have hit India in the recent times:

Cyclone Laila: In 2010, after a gap of two decades the south-eastern part of India was hit by two ‘severe’ cyclones within a gap a few months — the first being cyclone Laila which entered along the coast of the Bay of Bengal. A total of 65 people died in Sri Lanka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu and property worth $117.49 million was destroyed.

Cyclone Jal: Following cyclone Laila, cyclone Jal formed in the Pacific Ocean on October 31. Torrential rains in caused extensive flooding which led to 59 deaths in Thailand and four in Malaysia. Subsequently, Jal proceeded towards Andhra Pradesh where, through timely warnings, 70,000 people were evacuated from villages where damage was expected to be the highest. In Andhra Pradesh, 54 people died due to the storm.  The total damage estimated by the Centre was $53.55 million.

Cyclone Phailin: Originating and named in Vietnam, cyclone Phailin hit the peninsula in October 2013. The cyclone hit Andhra Pradesh and resulted in the evacuation of 64,000 people from low-lying areas. A total of 1.34 lakh people were eventually evacuated. With one casualty, the damage amounted to $8.1 million in Andhra Pradesh alone. Other affected states like Odisha, Jharkhand and neighbouring states recorded losses up to $688 million. Odisha recorded 44 deaths due to storm-related accidents.

Cyclone Hudhud: The last time a cyclone of Vardah's scale breached from the Bay of Bengal was in October 2014 when Cyclone Hudhud originated from the Andaman Islands and snowballed into a category IV cyclone, being dubbed as ‘Extremely Severe.' It proceeded to hit Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha. Death toll due to the cyclone was 124. The estimated damage was worth $3.4 billion.

Unlike most Bay of Bengal storms that dissipate quickly over land, Hudhud has been the only tropical cyclone whose remnant ever reached as far north as the Himalayas. The cyclone further proceeded up north to trigger an avalanche in Nepal.

Cyclone Nada: More recently, cyclone Nada appeared to threaten the peninsula in late November 2016. However, as the states geared up, the cyclone seemed to fizzle out with its landfall in Tamil Nadu. Schools were shut for two days to act as storm shelters for the citizens. 12 deaths were reported due to the storm. — ANI