Navy joins in rescuing the cyclone-hit

• The Indian Navy had launched a Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operation in coordination with local officials to evacuate about 5,000 people stranded at Buzi near Port Beira in Mozambique.
• The African nation has been devastated by tropical cyclone Idai.

Act as anchor

• Large fishing boats provided by Mozambique acted as anchor midway across the channel.
• Rigid-Hulled Inflatable Boat (RHIB) and Gemini boats will transport personnel from shore to the fishing boats to be transported to the Beira side.
• Ships of First Training squadron of Indian Navy, Sujata, Sarathi and Shardul, operating in Southern Indian Ocean were diverted to Port Beira in Mozambique based on the request of the Government of Mozambique
• Navy ships provided food, clothes, medicine and potable water to the affected people.

Add. Info

Tropical cyclone

• Tropical cyclone, also called typhoon or hurricane, an intense circular storm that originates over warm tropical oceans and is characterized by low atmospheric pressure, high winds, and heavy rain.
• Drawing energy from the sea surface and maintaining its strength as long as it remains over warm water, a tropical cyclone generates winds that exceed 119 km (74 miles) per hour.
• In extreme cases winds may exceed 240 km (150 miles) per hour, and gusts may surpass 320 km (200 miles) per hour.
• Accompanying these strong winds are torrential rains and a devastating phenomenon known as the storm surge, an elevation of the sea surface that can reach 6 metres (20 feet) above normal levels.
• Such a combination of high winds and water makes cyclones a serious hazard for coastal areas in tropical and subtropical areas of the world.
• Every year during the late summer months (July–September in the Northern Hemisphere and January–March in the Southern Hemisphere), cyclones strike regions as far apart as the Gulf Coast of North America, northwestern Australia, and eastern India and Bangladesh.
• Tropical cyclones are known by various names in different parts of the world.
• In the North Atlantic Ocean and the eastern North Pacific they are called hurricanes, and in the western North Pacific around the Philippines, Japan, and China the storms are referred to as typhoons.
• In the western South Pacific and Indian Ocean they are variously referred to as severe tropical cyclones, tropical cyclones, or simply cyclones.

The Hindu