 Phailin at peak intensity near the coast of Odisha on October 11 | |
| Meteorological history | |
|---|---|
| Formed | October 4, 2013 |
| Dissipated | October 14, 2013 |
| Extremely severe cyclonic storm | |
| 3-minute sustained (IMD) | |
| Highest winds | 215 km/h (130 mph) |
| Lowest pressure | 940 hPa (mbar); 27.76 inHg |
| Category 5-equivalent tropical cyclone | |
| 1-minute sustained (SSHWS) | |
| Highest winds | 260 km/h (160 mph) |
| Lowest pressure | 918 hPa (mbar); 27.11 inHg |
| Overall effects | |
| Fatalities | 46 total |
| Damage | $4.26 billion (2013 USD) |
| Areas affected | Thailand, Myanmar, India (especially Odisha), Nepal |
| IBTrACS | |
Part of the 2013 North Indian Ocean cyclone season | |
Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm Phailin (/ˈpaɪlɪn/; Thai: ไพลิน, romanized: Phịlin, lit. 'sapphire')[1] was one of the most intense tropical cyclones to make landfall in India since the 1999 Odisha cyclone.[2] The system was first noted as a tropical depression on October 4, 2013, within the Gulf of Thailand, to the west of Phnom Penh in Cambodia. Over the next few days, it moved westwards within an area of low to moderate vertical wind shear, before as it passed over the Malay Peninsula, it moved out of the Western Pacific Basin on October 6. It emerged into the Andaman Sea during the next day and moved west-northwest into an improving environment for further development before the system was named Phailin on October 9, after it had developed into a cyclonic storm and passed over the Andaman and Nicobar Islands into the Bay of Bengal.
During the next day, Phailin intensified rapidly and became a very severe cyclonic storm on October 10, equivalent to a Category 1 hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale (SSHWS). On October 11, the system became equivalent to a Category 5 hurricane on the SSHWS, before it started to weaken during the next day, as it approached the Indian state of Odisha. It made landfall later that day, near Gopalpur in Odisha coast, at around 22:30 IST (17:00 UTC) on October 12. Phailin subsequently weakened over land (becoming a Category 1 tropical cyclone) as a result of frictional forces, before it was last noted on October 14, as it degenerated into a well-marked area of low pressure.
Officials from Odisha's state government said that around 12 million people may be affected. The cyclone prompted India's biggest evacuation in 23 years with more than 550,000 people moved up from the coastline in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh to safer places.[3] Total losses were estimated at ₹260 billion (US$4.26 billion) from the storm.
- ^ Why cyclone Phailin is named so IBNLive.com (CNN–IBN), 2013-10-11.
- ^ "Very Severe Cyclonic Storm, PHAILIN over the Bay of Bengal (08-14 October 2013) : A Report" (PDF). IMD. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 November 2013. Retrieved October 20, 2013.
- ^ "Cyclone Phailin triggers India's biggest evacuation operation in 23 years". NDTV. 12 October 2013. Retrieved 13 October 2013.