With cyclone Fani having intensified into a extremely severe cyclonic storm, the Indian Navy today said it has started preparations to provide assistance in case of an emergency. The navy has prepared ships with additional divers, doctors, inflatable rubber boats and relief materials. The navy said that its aircraft are also standing by at air stations in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh to undertake reconnaissance, rescue, casualty evacuation and air drop of relief material to the stranded if required.
Cyclone Fani is headed towards the Odisha coast and is likely to hit south of Puri on Friday afternoon, the weather department said on Monday. Officials had earlier said that Fani can worsen into an "extremely severe cyclone" by tomorrow, prompting the government to put the National Disaster Response Force and the Indian Coast Guard on high alert.
