Severe Cyclone Yaas Made Landfall in India

Cyclone Yaas made landfall on Wednesday morning at 9 a.m. (local time) in the Indian state of Odisha, the local weather agency reports.

As a precaution, India has evacuated nearly two million people since Sunday.

“The very severe cyclone Yaas is located about 50 kilometres south-southeast of Balasore,” the meteorological service reports on Twitter. The eastern states of West Bengal and Odisha are expected to experience wind gusts of up to 165 kilometres per hour on Wednesday.

The evacuated people are received in schools and government buildings, among other places. The mass evacuations disrupt the authorities’ attempts to stop the further spread of the coronavirus. Although the number of infections in India is declining, the pressure on healthcare is still enormous.

Yaas is the second cyclone in India in a short time. A week ago, at least 155 people were killed on the west coast by cyclone Tauktae.