Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday said the resilience showed by people and officials helped in ‘mitigating the intensity’ of the cyclone ‘Nisarga’ which had hovered over the state amidst the COVID-19 crisis.
IMAGE: A Mumbai police official stands guard off the coast of the Arabian sea in Mumbai as cyclone Nisarga makes its landfall, on the outskirts of Mumbai, on Wednesday. Photograph: Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters
After hitting the Maharashtra coast near Alibaug with wind speeds of up to 120 kmph in afternoon, the cyclone weakened into intensity in the evening and moved towards north-east Maharashtra, sparing Mumbai and other areas.
Thackeray said losses have been reported from coastal Konkan and some other regions.
He said and orders have been issued to carry out spot inspections to assess the damages caused by the cyclone.
‘The unity exhibited by the people will help bring Maharashtra out of all crises,’ the CM said in a statement.
He also expressed grief over the two deaths reported from the state due to the cyclone-related incidents.
‘Thanking all who protected Maharashtra along with Mumbai in the face of the Nisarga cyclone which had hovered over Maharashtra at a time when the state is already grappling with COVID-19.
‘But we all warded it (the cyclone crisis) off. The people and administration fought hard and mitigated the intensity of the crisis,’ the chief minister said.
Thackeray said Maharashtra has blessings of Mumbadevi of Mumbai and Lord Vitthala of Pandharpur.
He said the state cannot thank enough its civic officials, district administrations, disaster management authority and medical squads for their work during the cyclone crisis.
‘None can withstand the fury of nature, but Maharashtra is united and strong in the face of crisis and the cyclone has shown this. This unity will help us bring the state out of all the crises,’ Thackeray said.
