Gujarat battered by most severe cyclone in decades, 150,000 evacuated as storm hits (VIDEO)

A deadly cyclone has made landfall in Gujarat, India, causing devastation, with nearly 150,000 people evacuated so far and 12 dead as the storm brushed past coastal states.

Cyclone Tauktae struck the Indian state of Gujarat on Monday evening and is expected to cause considerable damage as it continues its path inland. The eye of the storm is expected to make landfall at 19:00 local time (13:30 GMT), bringing 130 miles per hour winds with it, but it is already causing significant damage.  

“This will be the most severe cyclone to hit Gujarat in at least 20 years. This can be compared with the 1998 cyclone that hit Kandla and inflicted heavy damage,” State Revenue Secretary Pankaj Kumar told Reuters on Monday. The 1998 cyclone resulted in the death of more than 4000 people and caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damage. 

The cyclone has killed at least 12 people and has caused significant disruption as it travelled north along the west coast of India, brushing past the states of Kerala, Karnataka, Goa and Maharashtra.

Despite the eye of the storm being miles out at sea, Mumbai was battered by winds and rain on Sunday and Monday. The city’s rail system has been impacted by flooding, while two barges, with over 400 people on board, have gone adrift near the Bombay coastline. The Ministry of Defense said vessels had been deployed to retrieve them. 

The India Meteorological Department has described the cyclone as an “extremely severe cyclonic system,” an upgrade from Sunday when it was labeled “very severe.”

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