Disaster Preparedness and Recovery: India’s Tropical Cyclone Hudhud

At 11.30 am on October 12, 2014, a massive tropical cyclone, Hudhud, lashed the coastal states of southern India, killing around 46 people in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and in the eastern state of Odisha . The cyclone made landfall in the port city of Andhra Pradesh, Vishakhapatnam (also known as Vizag), and some districts of Odisha. It had a devastating impact on the two states, damaging houses and crops, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate their homes, and uprooting thousands of trees. In Vizag, the cyclone caused significant damage and losses to infrastructure such as the airport, navy installations, and many major industries – public sector undertakings (PSUs) such as Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited, Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, Vizag Port, the Hindustan Shipyard Ltd., and other smaller units...