Indian authorities have evacuated more than 1 million people from coastal areas of the eastern state of Udisha, with a major hurricane landing on Friday.
Peshinobada Sethi, the special relief commissioner in Odesha, said Hurricane Fannie was starting to land near the famous tourist area of ​​Puri and it would take three to four hours to cross the area.
The storm, which ranges from 160 to 180 kilometers per hour, is expected to move eastward towards West Bengal and Bangladesh, Indian Navy spokesman Deek Sharma said.
"People have to stay indoors as this is the worst time," Sharma said.
Two naval vessels are following the cyclone, which has been forming for weeks.
At least 147 trains scheduled to run along the coasts of Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and Udisha have been cancelled and flights from Bhubaneswar, capital of Udisha, have been suspended for 24 hours.
Sethi said Odysha´s government had reported more than 1.2 million people from vulnerable areas, including more than 1,000 pregnant women, to clinics and hospitals.
Fannie is expected to leave behind destruction, and teams from federal relief departments and government departments have been deployed. Navy, Air Force, Army and Coast Guard were on high alert.
More than 10,000 people died in 1999 when the country´s most powerful hurricane struck the state of Orissa, accompanied by winds of up to 260 km per hour.
