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Severe Cyclonic Storm Helen () was a relatively weak
tropical cyclone A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its locat ...
that formed in the Bay of Bengal Region on 18 November 2013, from the remnants of Tropical Storm Podul. It was classified as Deep Depression BOB 06 by the India Meteorological Department on 19 November. As it was moving on a very slow northwest direction on 20 November, it became Cyclonic Storm Helen as it brought light to heavy rainfall in eastern India. It then became a Severe Cyclonic Storm on the afternoon hours of 21 November. The storm then made landfall over
Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...
and dissipated shortly after. Governments alerted residents and evacuated them, with a total of 20,000 evacuated residents. Government teams were prepared to help relief efforts, with a video conference created by the Minister of Revenue to plan possible preparations. Extensive damage was reported, with uprooted trees and power disruption reported. A total of 10 people died, with a damage of Rs50 billion (US$796 million).


Meteorological history

Late on 17 November, the remnant energy of Tropical Storm Podul contributed to the development of a trough over the Bay of Bengal, located near the Andaman Islands. During the next couple of days, the storm slowly organized and consolidated, prompting the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) to issue a Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert (TCFA) during the early hours of 19 November. Later on the same day, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) upgraded the storm to a depression, classifying it as ''BOB 06'', followed by the JTWC reporting that the storm had reached Tropical Storm strength. A couple of hours later, the IMD upgraded BOB 06 into a Deep Depression, as the storm continued to intensify. The storm slowly drifted west-northwestward, while deep convection consolidated around the system's well-defined center of circulation. In the early hours of 20 November, the IMD classified BOB 06 as a Cyclonic Storm, thereby officially naming it ''Helen''. Early on 21 November, Helen continued to intensify into a Severe Cyclonic Storm, reaching its peak intensity of with a central pressure of . Shortly before landfall, the storm's convection sheared to the north, causing its low-level circulation to fully expose followed by the JTWC issuing its final bulletin, reporting that the storm had weakened due to land interaction. Helen made landfall south of
Machilipatnam Machilipatnam (), also known as Masulipatnam and Bandar (), is a city in Krishna district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a municipal corporation and the administrative headquarters of Krishna district. It is also the Tehsil, mandal ...
, Andhra Pradesh and rapidly deteriorated into a deep depression.


Preparations and impact

The
Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...
government alerted all coastal districts of the state, especially southern coastal districts. The district collectors were directed to evacuate people from low-lying areas near the coast. Andhra Pradesh also alerted fishermen. More than 20,000 people were evacuated from the areas affected by the storm. Three districts, specifically district administrations were alerted to warn people for flash floods. Minister of Revenue Raghu Veera Reddy started a video conference with district collectors to plan possible preparedness for the disaster. The government of
Krishna district Krishna district is a district in the Coastal Andhra region in Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, with Machilipatnam as its administrative headquarters. It is surrounded on the East by Bay of Bengal, West by Guntur district, Guntur, Bapatla distric ...
prepared four relief teams. An estimated 130 relief camps were opened. Six teams from the
National Disaster Response Force The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) is a specialized force in India, tasked with the responsibility of responding to natural disasters, natural and man-made disasters. It operates under the National Disaster Management Authority (India) ...
were deployed to help relief work, following 450 people deployed from the State Disaster Management Force. One helicopter was also prepared in case. Helen brought extensive damage to Machilipatnam in
Krishna district Krishna district is a district in the Coastal Andhra region in Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, with Machilipatnam as its administrative headquarters. It is surrounded on the East by Bay of Bengal, West by Guntur district, Guntur, Bapatla distric ...
, with uprooted trees and electric lines. The districts of Krishna,
East Godavari East Godavari is a district in the Coastal Andhra region of Andhra Pradesh, India. Its district headquarters is at Rajamahendravaram. Geography This district is surrounded by: * North East: Alluri Sitharama Raju district * North West: Eluru d ...
and
Srikakulam Srikakulam is a city and the headquarters of Srikakulam district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. census, it has a population of 165,735. There are many other places of Buddhist Tourism such as Salihundam, Kalinga Patnam, Dabbaka Vaan ...
,
Visakhapatnam Visakhapatnam (; List of renamed places in India, formerly known as Vizagapatam, and also referred to as Vizag, Visakha, and Waltair) is the largest and most populous metropolitan city in the States and union territories of India, Indian stat ...
and
Guntur Guntur (), natively spelt as Gunturu, is a city in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of Guntur district. The city is part of the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region and is lo ...
suffered heavy rainfall. Heavy damage to harvest crops was also reported, with the
West Godavari district The West Godavari district is a coastal district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh with an administrative headquarters in Bhimavaram. As of the 2011 Census of India, the district has an area of and a population of 1,779,935. It is bounded ...
being worst affected.
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,
coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...
and
banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large treelike herbaceous flowering plants in the genus '' Musa''. In some countries, cooking bananas are called plantains, distinguishing the ...
crops have suffered damage. Power disruption was also reported around the affected areas. The agricultural loss in Andhra Pradesh were amounted to be Rs50 billion (US$796 million). A total of 10 deaths have been reported in incidents related to the cyclone. Including one block development officer. Major crop damage was reported, with multiple areas flooded. Three boats carrying 20 fishermen were reported missing, out of which two were reported as safe. The Coast Guard's vessel ''Avantibai'' and an
HAL Chetak HAL may refer to: Aviation * Halali Airport (IATA airport code: HAL) Halali, Oshikoto, Namibia * Hawaiian Airlines (ICAO airline code: HAL) * HAL Airport, Bengaluru, India * Hindustan Aeronautics Limited an Indian aerospace manufacturer of figh ...
helicopter of the Navy have been dispatched for search and rescue of the third boat.


See also

*
Cyclone Viyaru Cyclonic Storm Viyaru (), operationally known as Cyclonic Storm Mahasen (), was a relatively weak tropical cyclone that caused loss of life across six countries in South Asia, Southern and Southeastern Asia. Originating from an area of low pressur ...
* Cyclone Maarutha *
Cyclone Bijli Cyclonic Storm Bijli (Joint Typhoon Warning Center, JTWC designation: ''01B''), was the first tropical cyclone to form during the 2009 North Indian Ocean cyclone season. Bijli formed from an area of Low Pressure on April 14. Later that evening, R ...
*
Cyclone Nilam Cyclonic Storm Nilam () was a weak, but deadly tropical cyclone that became the deadliest tropical cyclone to directly affect South India since Cyclone Jal in 2010 North Indian Ocean cyclone season, 2010. The second named Cyclonic Storm of the ra ...
* Cyclone Laila *
Cyclone Phailin Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm Phailin (; ) was one of the most intense tropical cyclones to make landfall in India since the 1999 Odisha cyclone. The system was first noted as a tropical depression on October 4, 2013, within the Gulf of Thailand ...


Notes


References


External links


Rapid Response - Cyclone Relief Organisation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Helen 2013 disasters in India 2013 North Indian Ocean cyclone season History of Andhra Pradesh (1947–2014) Disasters in Andhra Pradesh Tropical cyclones in India Severe cyclonic storms Tropical cyclones in 2013