BHUBANESWAR: Odisha Fire and Emergency Service on Friday removed 1,150 trees uprooted by the strong winds induced by severe cyclonic storm Dana.
Uprooted trees were removed from 427 places including 160 houses by 5 pm on the day. Trees which had fallen on government buildings, schools and hospitals were also removed.
Odisha Fire Service DG Sudhanshu Sarangi said all efforts are underway to clear the fallen trees. However, it may take another 24 hours to remove all the trees from the affected houses.
Agencies such as Odisha Fire and Emergency Service, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) are working round the clock to ensure that normalcy returns at the earliest, he said.
Odisha Fire Service has deployed 182 teams consisting of over 2,000 personnel to carry out rescue and relief operations in various districts of the state. Each team has been equipped with four mechanical saws, light, generator, an inflatable boat, cutters, spreaders and other rescue equipment.
Sarangi, who was an SP when the state was battered by the 1999 Super Cyclone, said Odisha Fire Service has come a long way since then and emerged as a specialised rescue and disaster management agency.
“Odisha Fire and Emergency Service is notified as the first responder under the Disaster Management Act. All the fire stations are multi-nodal centres and respond to disasters like fire, road, train, chemical and biological accidents as well as natural calamities,” said Sarangi.
Similarly, 19 teams of NDRF have been deployed in nine districts to carry out rescue and relief operations. The NDRF personnel had also carried out awareness sessions to inform people about the risks of a tropical storm and the preventive measures which need to be taken ahead of Dana’s landfall in the state.
