Hurricane Toktai deepens wounds in India

India is preparing to evacuate thousands of low-lying areas along its western coast, with a strong hurricane expected to make landfall Tuesday morning in the western state of Gujarat.
The Indian Meteorological Agency said in a statement: “It is very likely that the cyclone will increase in strength during the next twenty-four hours, and move in the north and northwest direction and reach the coast of Gujarat on the evening of the seventeenth (of May).”

Cyclone Toktai, which formed in the Arabian Sea, is expected to pass through the state of Gujarat with winds of up to 175 kilometers per hour and to reach land in the state the next morning.

The meteorological agency also warned that homes could be severely damaged and destroyed, and said rail services were expected to be disrupted until May 21.

In a statement, the government said that “all measures are being taken to evacuate the residents of the cyclone-affected areas in order to ensure that there is no loss of life at all.”

An official in Gujarat state said that the evacuations of residents from coastal areas have begun, and that they will include more than 100,000 people, according to “Reuters”.

The cyclone will also represent a challenge for the state government, which deals with large numbers of cases of “Covid-19” disease, as the government is working there to ensure the continued provision of energy and oxygen resources to HIV isolation hospitals and other medical facilities.

In the neighboring state of Maharashtra, the government transferred the “Covid-19” patients who are being treated in temporary centers in Mumbai, the state capital, to other hospitals as the typhoon moved towards Gujarat, according to the state government chief’s office.