The Indian Meteorology Department started tracking cyclone Foni days before it made landfall

By Omar Amach

Bangkok – Considered one of the worst storms to hit eastern India since 1999, Cyclone Fani left behind a trail of destruction and as of 6 May took the lives of around 38 people in the state of Odisha, according to media reports. Odisha, however, is no stranger to cyclones. In 1999, a super cyclone killed 9,885 people according to the official death toll. This marked decrease in deaths is the result of 20 years of investments in disaster risk reduction and preparedness.

Last month, the state upgraded its early warning system to increase its reach to all members of the public via 122 siren towers in six coastal districts. The warnings, coupled with the work of national and state disaster forces, helped evacuate 1.2 million people into nearly 4,000 shelters before cyclone Fani hit, saving many lives.

Following the 1999 cyclone, the state established the Odisha State Disaster Management Authority (OSDMA) as the first dedicated disaster management agency in India, six years before the federal government set up its national agency. It also built 800 cyclone and flood shelters, invested in early warning systems, created a Disaster Rapid Action Force, and conducted public awareness campaigns.

More recently, with support from the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), it became one of few Indian states to create a disaster loss database and to report its progress in meeting the targets of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.

“Odisha’s preparedness, early warning system, and quick action have clearly succeeded in saving lives and averting a tragedy,” said Ms Loretta Hieber Girardet, Head of UNDRR in Asia-Pacific.

By the second day, the storm had weakened into a tropical depression as it began to make its way to southwestern Bangladesh, where authorities followed Odisha's example and were able to move over a million people out of harm’s way through a massive evacuation. Reports indicate 12 people died there as a result of Fani.