A huge cyclone hit the coast of southern India yesterday with winds up to 112 miles per hour. The storm, that was given the name "Hudhud," killed at least eight people after forcing hundreds of thousands to evacuate, reported The Wall Street Journal.
The cyclone was reported to have touched down on the coast between Kailasagiri and Bheemili at about 11:30 a.m. local time. The storm is expected to cause storm surges "of up to five feet" and flood the lower coastal areas.
According to NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a storm surge is different from a tsunami. A storm surge is a tidal wave caused by high winds. A tsunami is a water wall caused by an earthquake. An article on Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted an official as citing the difference as this: a storm surge "requires organized evacuation that can be undertaken within a 24 to 48 hour preparation period while a tsunami alert requires outright, spontaneous evacuation where the lead time can be as short as 30 minutes."
BBC News reported that relief operations are already underway. "Reports say 24 disaster relief teams, 155 medical teams and the navy have been deployed in the affected areas, where hundreds of thousands of people have taken refuge in 223 relief camps," the news source cited.
