The wail of winds sweeping through the port city with speeds in excess of 150 kmph, accompanied by a relentless sheet of pouring water, were what people in Visakhapatnam will remember for a long time to come.
As expected, Hudhud intensified into a very severe cyclonic storm from around 9.30 am on Sunday. That was when people gave up hope of venturing out and decided to stay indoors with every door and window tightly shut.
“Last year cyclone Phailin washed off the same coastal regions (Vishakhapatnam and Odisha). Fortunately, it did not hit the Vishakhapatnam coast as much as feared. However, Hudhud proved it otherwise as the fear of witnessing a devastating natural calamity is something which cannot be expressed in words,” says Sunita, a resident of Seethammadhara.
The first signs of the intensity of the cyclone Hudhud began at 10.45 pm on Saturday. A few of them were power blackout, window panes getting smashed, cellphone services getting disrupted, huge mango and coconut trees getting uprooted and blocking the roads and electricity poles crashing down.
Harshita, an 8-year-old, woke up to the deafening noise of nature’s fury. She says, “I thought the world is coming to an end and could not make out what is this all about.”
Even for those staying indoors, the experience turned out to be an onerous task. “We have never come across such menacing winds all through our life. As a result the rain water gushed through doors and windows making us difficult to drain them out from home.” says Malathi, a resident of H.B. Colony.
As a precautionary measure and increased high awareness levels, several people have stocked up milk packets and other essential commodities in advance. Though there was a sense of alert everywhere, the landfall of Hudhud shook the denizens beyond their preparedness.
