Bhubaneshwar, May 21: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday expressed grief over the loss of lives and destruction caused by Cyclone Amphan. Naveen Patnaik extended all possible help to West Bengal as Cyclone Amphan also wreaked havoc here. The Odisha CM asked the chief secretary of his state to be in touch with his West Bengal counterpart. Cyclone Amphan: MHA Team Will Visit West Bengal, Odisha to Assess Damage, Says NDRF Chief SN Pradhan.

Patnaik in a tweet said, “Deeply saddened at the loss of so many lives and the trail of destruction due to #CycloneAmphan. In this hour of crisis, people of #Odisha are with people of West Bengal. Asked @SecyChief  to be in touch with Chief Secy of West Bengal and extend all possible help.”

Naveen Patnaik's Tweet:

Earlier in the day, Patnaik conducted an aerial survey of the area affected by the cyclone. in another tweet, he said, “Steps are being taken up on a war footing to restore normalcy.’ As many as 44.80 lakh people in 89 blocks have been affected in Odisha by cyclone Amphan. Odisha Chief Secretary Asit Tripathy said that as per the preliminary reports, around 6,745 villages in 1,500 panchayats under 89 blocks had been affected by cyclone Amphan.

Video of Naveen Patnaik Conducting Aerial Survey:

Tripathy added that around 2,00,400 people have been evacuated and sheltered in 3,228 cyclone shelters and other buildings. All fishermen had been brought back from seas and 22,050 fishing boats in the coastal districts berthed in safe places.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Bengal and Odisha on Friday to take stock of the situation in the wake of Cyclone Amphan. PM Modi will conduct aerial surveys and take part in review meetings. As cyclone Amphan is currently whirling at a speed of 70 kmph over Bangladesh a day after leaving a trail of devastation across a wide swath of West Bengal and Odisha, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is setting up special teams to visit these states and assess the damages. These teams expected to arrive in these states by tomorrow.

A day after severe cyclonic storm Amphan wreaked havoc in Kolkata, Howrah, Hooghly and North and South 24 Parganas districts of West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Thursday that at least 72 people had lost their lives due to the cyclone. She also urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit the state.

(With inputs from IANS)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 21, 2020 10:54 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).