Over 200,000 evacuated in India ahead of Cyclone Phailin

PanARMENIAN.Net - More than 200,000 people in India are being evacuated as a massive cyclone is sweeping through the Bay of Bengal towards the east coast, BBC News said.

Cyclone Phailin, categorised as "very severe" by weather forecasters, is expected to hit Orissa and Andhra Pradesh states on Saturday, October 12 evening.

The Meteorological Department has predicted the storm will bring winds up to 220 km/h (136mph).

A deadly super-cyclone in 1999 killed more than 10,000 people in Orissa.

But officials say this time they are better prepared, the BBC's Sanjoy Majumder in Delhi reports.

However, the U.S. Navy's Joint Typhoon Warning Center in Hawaii is forecasting even stronger winds, predicting sustained speeds of up to 269 km/h (167 mph).

Officials said Cyclone Phailin is expected to make landfall close to the city of Gopalpur (Orissa state), bringing a storm surge of at least 3m (10ft) that was likely to cause "extensive damage" to mud houses on the coast.

The army is on standby in the two states for emergency and relief operations. Officials said helicopters and food packages were ready to be dropped in the storm-affected areas.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Navy's Joint Typhoon Warning Centre predicted that winds could reach 315 km/h, while the London-based Tropical Storm Risk classified Phailin as a Category Five storm - the most powerful.