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Cyclone Gaja: 11 killed in Tamil Nadu, CM announces compensation of Rs 10 lakh to victims kin

Eleven people have been killed in Tamil Nadu owing to the cyclonic storm Gaja which made its landfall near Vedaranyam in Nagapattinam district on early hours of Friday leaving a trail of destruction in the coastal districts.

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Eleven people have been killed in Tamil Nadu owing to the cyclonic storm Gaja which made its landfall near Vedaranyam in Nagapattinam district on early hours of Friday leaving a trail of destruction in the coastal districts.

Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami told reporters in Salem that so far 11 persons died across the state in the cyclone-related incidents. He also announced a solatium of Rs 10 lakh each to the family of the victims.

“Nagapattinam district was severely affected in Cyclone Gaja. The officials were directed to enumerate the extent of damages caused to the properties and crops. As a precautionary measure, about 82,000 people living in the low-lying areas and thatched houses were moved to 471 relief camps in six coastal districts,” Palaniswami said, adding that relief and rescue operations would be undertaken on a war footing to help people resume their normal life in cyclone-hit areas.

At 11.30 am on Friday, the cyclonic storm Gaja has weakened into a deep depression and lay centered over interior Tamil Nadu at Dindigul district said S Balachandran, the deputy director of IMD Chennai.

When the cyclonic storm made its landfall in the early hours of Friday, the coastal areas between Nagapattinam town and Vedaranniyam witnessed wind speed of 100-110 kilometer per hour gusting up to 120 kmph. Atirampattinam in Thanjavur district recorded maximum wind speed of 117 kmph while Nagapattinam town witnessed 100 kmph.

Heavy winds have uprooted several trees hindering the flow of traffic while damages to electricity poles and telecom towers have affected power supply and communication in the parts of Nagapattinam, Thanjavur and Pudukkotai. The highway leading to Vedaraniyam town and Kodiyakarai remained cut off with uprooted trees and electricity poles blocking vehicle movement.

Normal life has come to a standstill the six cyclone-affected districts including Nagapattinam, Thanjavur and Pudukottai due to power cuts. Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation limited said that over 12,000 powers, 102 substations, 495 power towers, 100 transformers and 500 km length of power lines were damaged in the cyclone-affected districts. To carry out the restoration works, additional manpower from Trichy and Coimbatore were being sent to Thanjavur district, the press release said, adding that the power supply would be restored in a phased manner in the next two days.  

Photos: Trail of damages caused by cyclonic storm Gaja at Vedaranyam in Nagapattinam.

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