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Cyclone Tauktae Research
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Abstract
Cyclone Tauktae took place between the 14th May and 19th May 2021. The deadly, tropical cyclone affected areas in India, Maldives, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The Cyclone resulted in 174 deaths (169 deaths in India and 5 deaths in Pakistan) and 81 people are missing. It was reported that in Gujarat, 16,000 houses were damaged.
Only 5 days later, Cyclone Yaas struck Bangladesh, India and Nepal. In West Bengal, more than 4,500 villages were damaged. 2 individuals were killed by uprooted trees. Agricultural land was affected and 120 village settlements in Odisha were heavily flooded. In Khulna (Bangladesh), 5,000 were left homeless.
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Background
Impacts of climate change on cyclones
The unfortunate warming of the surface ocean from human-induced climate change is likely to fuel more powerful tropical cyclones within the coming years. Tropical cyclone’s precipitation rates are projected to increase due to enhanced atmospheric moisture associated with anthropogenic global warming. Warmer seas could cause the source areas (the areas where the storms would form) to extend further north and south of the equator. This process results in wind speeds potentially increasing 2-11 percent and rainfall rates during these storms increasing by about 20 percent. Sea level rise is likely to make tropical storms more damaging with increases in coastal flooding and subsequent storm damage along coasts as well. Low-lying coastal communities, where the population density is high and the income level low, currently are at most at risk.
Why is there an increased amount of cyclones happening in the Indian ocean?
Cyclones are much more likely to gather intensity over warmer waters. The Arabian Sea, part of the west Indian Ocean, generally has a sea surface temperature of below 28C (82F) and recorded just 93 cyclones between 1891 and 2000. By comparison, the warmer Bay of Bengal in the east Indian Ocean, where temperatures are permanently above 28C, recorded 350 cyclones over the same period. A 2016 Nature study found that anthropogenic global heating had contributed to the increased frequency of extremely severe cyclonic storms over the Arabian Sea. Roxy Mathew Koll, a climate scientist at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, said, “The entire Indian Ocean is warming at a faster rate compared to the Atlantic or Pacific.”
How cyclones are affecting ocean biodiversity
Flooding can destroy vegetation and flow into estuaries, damaging the plant and animal communities that live there. Cyclones can affect coral cover, species diversity, and reef productivity. Strong cyclones can shape the coral reef by affecting the benthic reef communities and underlying reef structure. Fortunately, coral reefs have a certain physical resilience against damaging cyclones. They can recover relatively quickly if there are not many outside stressors. Cyclones can increase sedimentation, alter local salinity, and cause short-term changes in sea level. High winds and torrential rainfall increase turbidity and result in more sedimentation on coral reefs. This sediment can negatively affect the growth of coral and even kill it by decreasing the permeability of light to coral, which is necessary for photosynthetic processes. Reef fish are usually killed through the disruptions of their surroundings from this weather event.
Effect of cyclones on socio-economics of the region
The winds from a Category 1 cyclone cause minimal damage to shrubbery and trees. Category 5 storms are the most forceful, bringing winds of more than 156 miles per hour. Winds this fast can rip trees from the ground and flatten buildings. Cyclonic winds also can damage infrastructures, such as power lines, communication towers, bridges, and roads. In the aftermath of Cyclone Yaas, more than 20 villages in the southern Patuakhali district were submerged after waters washed away two river embankments.
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Discussion
About Cyclone Tauktae and Cyclone Yaas Causes
At the beginning of the storm, Cyclone Yaas was downgraded to low threat as the system rapidly lost wind intensity as it interacted with the land. However, the Bay of Bengal is a "textbook example" of the worst kind of places for storm surges to develop - shallow, concave bays where water is pushed by the strong winds of a tropical cyclone. This gets concentrated as the storm moves up the bay. Meteorologists say that high sea temperatures in the "warm" Bay of Bengal are also a major reason for strong cyclones.
Impacts of cyclones on local ecology and people’s lives
Cyclones that fall in between cause varying degrees of destruction which include tearing branches from trees and destroying vegetation. When this happens, it often results in loss of animal habitats and interrupts and changes ecosystems, and can lead to loss of animal habitats. Additionally, flying debris from any of these windstorms can kill people or animals. Cyclones can produce flooding in two ways as well. First, tropical cyclones frequently create a surge in ocean waters causing sea levels to rise above normal. These surges, sometimes called tidal waves, can drown people and animals and are often the greatest killers in a cyclone. Cyclones also can bring torrential rains that lead to flooding. A cyclone’s high winds can erode the soil, thereby damaging existing vegetation and ecosystems. For instance, Gujarat’s Asiatic lions, an endangered species found only in the Saurashtra region, live where Cyclone Taukrae is expected to inflict the most damage. India is especially vulnerable as 14% of its 1.3 billion population lives in coastal districts, and the number living in coastal areas below 10 meters elevation is forecast to rise threefold by 2060. “Inland countries, such as Nepal, can also be affected when strong Indian Ocean cyclones do not dissipate after landfall, causing excessive snowfall in the Himalayan highlands,” said Arun Shrestha, a climate scientist at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, “causing blizzards.” Tropical Rainstorm Yaas can still bring heavy rain and life-threatening flooding to portions of northern India and Nepal. When Flash floods occur, they result
in mudslides and washouts.
Lastly, Mucormycosis, informally known as "Black Fungus," is increasingly cropping up across India, and Kolkata has recently reported its first cases of the fungal infection. - This fungus grows in extremely moist environments. In Orissa, there are reports that two people were killed by uprooted trees caused by Cyclone Yaas.
Impacts
Cyclone Tauktae weakened after it made landfall on Monday(May 17,2021), but at least 19 people have already died in the storm. Winds have ravaged coastal areas in the western state of Gujarat, uprooting trees and electricity poles. In the Saurashtra district, the electricity supply has been cut as a precautionary measure. About 200,000 people were evacuated across several states as the cyclone approached, bringing with it heavy rains and gusty winds. People were placed in shelters for safety, yet this brought them to another danger with the risk of COVID. Piles pressure on local administrations already struggling with high Covid caseloads. On Monday, India reported 281,386 new coronavirus infections over the past 24 hours. Gujarat and Mumbai suspended their vaccination drives on Monday owing to the cyclone. Rains from the storm also killed six people in Kerala, Karnataka, and Goa over the weekend(May 14, 2021, to May 17, 2021) as the cyclone moved along the western coastline. Indian authorities have moved nearly 150,000 people from their homes in the state of Gujarat to safety and shut ports. Mumbai’s urban rail system, one of the world’s busiest, was also affected as tracks flooded. A Reuters witness saw uprooted trees and stranded cars and buses in the city.
Cyclone Yaas - leading to more than a million people being evacuated into safe shelters. Even before the cyclone Tauktae happened, with gusts up to 185km (115 miles) per hour, associated heavy rains and strong winds killed around 20 people in western and southern India. The Hindu newspaper reported that more than 16,000 houses were damaged in Gujarat
Support + attempts at recovery
The National Disaster Response Force has set up 149 teams for evacuation and rescue operations, with close to a hundred of them deployed across the eastern coast. The federal agency has directed its rescue teams to ensure major medical oxygen generation plants based in Odisha/Orissa and West Bengal remain operational. The Indian Navy has also been put on high alert with four warships and several aircraft ready to offer assistance. In Odisha, West Bengal and Bangladesh people are still recovering from Super Cyclone Amphan, where nearly 100 people died. Crematoriums, graveyards, and hospitals were already functioning at full capacity with the rapid increase in cases and deaths, though there is a relative fall in fresh infections now, according to official data. A volunteer wildlife rescue group operating in the city has responded to nearly 300 calls for rescuing various birds, mammals, and reptiles in and around the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) in the past three days after Cyclone Tauktae passed by the Maharashtra coast. As of Thursday afternoon, 80 animals – largely birds, some of which were pelagic and migratory birds – have been rescued. Rescuers said these birds were not usually seen in interior Mumbai and were probably displaced by the strong winds that lashed the city earlier this week. “These birds are uncommon in Mumbai, except the ibis which is sometimes seen in mangrove areas around the coast. The birds we found were likely displaced from their migratory paths, and were mainly found in a state of extreme exhaustion,” said Pawan Sharma, founder of the Resqink Association for Wildlife Welfare (RAWW).
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References
Thomas R. Knutson, Maya V. Chung, Gabe Vecchi, Jingru Sun, Tsung-Lin Hsieh, and Adam J. P. Smith, “Climate change is probably increasing the intensity of tropical cyclones”, Climate.gov, 31st March 2021, accessed 15th June 2021
Prayag Arora-Desai, “Cyclone Tauktae: 80 birds, animals rescued in 3 days from Mumbai Metropolitan Region”, Hindustan Times, 21st May 2021, accessed 16th June 2021
“Cyclones - coraldigest”, Coral Digest, accessed 15th June 2021
“Cyclone Tauktae: Seventy-seven missing at sea in the wake of the storm”, BBC News, 19th May 2021, accessed 13th June 2021
Derek Gonzales, “The Effects of Cyclones on the Environment”, Sciencing, 25th April 2018, accessed 14th June 2021
“India’s Gujarat state braces for ‘monster’ Cyclone Tauktae”, The Guardian, 17th May 2021, accessed 13th June 2021
Neelima Vallangi, “Rapid heating of Indian Ocean worsening cyclones, say scientists”, The Guardian, 27th May 2021, accessed 15th June 2021
“The impacts of climate change on tropical storms”, BBC Bitesize, accessed 15th June 2021
Guardian staff and agencies, “Cyclone Tauktae: death toll rises to more than 90 after a huge storm hits India”, The Guardian, 20th May 2021, accessed 13th June 2021
“Cyclone Yaas: Severe storm-lashed India and Bangladesh”, BBC News, 26th May 2021, accessed 13th June 2021
Neville Lazarus, “Cyclone Yaas: 1m people evacuated as storm hits the east coast of India amid devastating COVID-19 surge”, Sky News, 26th May 2021, accessed 13th June 2021
Maura Kelly, “At least 9 dead after Cyclone Yaas slams vulnerable part of India”, AccuWeather, 28th May 2021, accessed 13th June 2021
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Contributors
Author: Raksita Rajagopal Proofreader: Emily Johnson
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