Odisha reported its highest monsoon rainfall in the last 20 years as a weakening deep depression brought torrential rain, landslides and strong winds to parts of the state, disrupting road and rail links as schools remained shut in eight districts, officials said.
IMD officials said Tentulikhunti in Nabrangpur district witnessed 395 mm of rainfall in the last 24 hours, the highest in the state. Officials said that an unusually active monsoon triggered by low pressures and deep depressions over Bay of Bengal have resulted in the state getting its highest monsoon rainfall in the last 20 years. Schools in four blocks of Kandhamal district, Daringbadi, G Udayagiri, Tikabali and Chakapad, were also shut.
The weather system crossed the coast near Andhra Pradesh’s Kalingapatnam early on Thursday with winds of 55-65kmph and gusts up to 75kmph. In Gajapati district, the local administration evacuated about 5,000 people to safer locations as rainfall intensified. Officials have identified around 139 landslide-prone locations and shifted residents to 249 cyclone shelters.
It was moving northwestwards and was expected to weaken further, although its effects were forecast to continue for several hours.
