DISASTER MANAGEMENT (GGB564)

B.A./B.Sc. (Hons) V Semester 2020-2021

Topic: EARTHQUAKE

An earthquake is a sudden shaking movement of the surface of the earth. It is known as a

quake, tremblor or tremor. Earthquakes can range in size from those that are so weak that they
cannot be felt to those violent enough to toss people around and destroy whole
cities. The seismicity or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of
earthquakes experienced over a period of time.

Earthquake is a geo-physical phenomenon which is considered as the interplay of geological and

geomorphological dynamism of Earth. The earth as a whole is composed of three main layers the
Crust, the Mantle and the Core. According to the Plate Tectonic Theory, the crust, which is the
outermost layer of the earth, is made up of lithospheric plates that float over the viscous mantle
layer and remains in ‘isostasy’ The plates forming the crust move away, towards or past each
other very slowly over the mantle. When friction/interaction between two plates occur, it results
in the sudden release of energy in the form of waves that move along the earth crust and is
termed as seismic activity or earthquakes. The boundary between two plates is generally
encountered with faults or other structural deformities. Faults are not continuous but usually
consist of a fault zone or discontinuity that is present due to the rock-mass movement.

Fig: Elements of Earthquake

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 Table : Richter scale
Grade Effects
2.5 Generally not felt, but recorded on seismographs
3.5 Felt by many people
4.5 Some local damage may occur
6.0 A destructive earthquake
7.0 A major earthquake
8.0 and above Massive earthquakes

Thus earthquake is a form of energy, which is transmitted to the surface of the earth in
the form of waves called seismic waves. The study of earthquakes and the waves they create is
called seismology (from the Greek seismos, “to shake”). Scientists who study earthquakes are
called seismologists. The instrument that records the seismic waves is called seismograph.
The exact spot under the earth surface at which an earthquake originates is called the
focus or hypocenter. The point on the earth surface above the focus is called the epicenter. The
Richter scale is used to measure the intensity of earthquakes. The intensity is measured on a
scale of 0 to 8 and above (Table above).
Thus, Earthquakes result from the sudden release of pressure which has slowly built up within
the rocks of the Earth’s crust. Energy is released in the form of shockwaves known as seismic
waves, which lose energy as they radiate outwards from the centre of the earthquake (the focus).
The point on the Earth’s surface that suffers the greatest intensity of seismic waves is the
epicenter, which lies directly above the focus. Earthquake intensity is measured on the modified
Mercalli scale, which ranges from one to 12, depending upon the intensity. This is a semi-
quantitative linear scale. Earthquake magnitude is measured on the Richter scale (named after the
seismologist who devised it).

Earthquake features
There are three main stages to an earthquake:
• Foreshocks relate to the initial shattering of obstructions or bonds along the failure plane.

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 • Principal shock is the most severe shock. It may last from just a few seconds to a couple
of minutes.
• Aftershocks recur as the shockwaves travel around the Earth. They generally decrease in
frequency and intensity over time, but may occur over a period of several days to several
months. They have great potential to cause damage, as structures have already been
weakened by the principal shock.
What are the various types of earthquake?
Classification of earthquake is based on several parameters. Based on scale of magnitude (M),
earthquake may be of the Micro (M < 3.5) or macro (M > 3.5) type.
 Depending upon the extent of energy released and strength of the ground shaking it may be of
several types, like moderate, strong, very strong, great and very great earthquake.
 Depending up on the scale of damage, the earthquake may be of various types, such as Less
damaging earthquake, Moderate damaging earthquake, and catastrophic earthquake.
 Depending upon the focal depth (h) of the event, it could be a shallow earthquake (d< 70 km);
intermediate depth earthquake (70 < h < 300 km); the deep earthquake (300 < h < 700 km).
 Depending upon the location of events in different tectonic settings, earthquake may be of
intra-plate, inter-plate, and sub-oceanic earthquake.
 Depending upon involvement of other agencies / phenomena with earthquake genesis, it may
be of several types, such as Reservoir induced; Fluid-driven earthquake; Tsunamigenic
earthquake, and volcanic earthquake.
 Depending upon the type of faulting involved during earthquake genesis, earthquake may be
categorized into several categories, such as normal faulting, reverse faulting, thrust faulting, and
mega-thrust earthquake.
 Depending upon the frequency content, the earthquake may be of Low-Frequency tremors or
high – Frequency tremors.
 Depending upon the epicenter distance (distance between earthquake main shock and the
recording stations), the earthquake may be classified into Local, Regional and Global
earthquake.
INDIA - Basic Geography and Tectonic Features
India lies at the northwestern end of the Indo-Australian Plate, which encompasses India,
Australia, a major portion of the Indian Ocean and other smaller countries. This plate is colliding
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against the huge Eurasian Plate and going under the Eurasian Plate; this process of one tectonic
plate getting under another is called subduction. A sea, Tethys, separated these plates before they
collided. Part of the lithosphere, the Earth's Crust, is covered by oceans and the rest of the
continents. The former can undergo subduction at great depths when it converges against another
plate, but the latter is buoyant and so tends to remain close to the surface. When continents
converge, large amounts of shortening and thickening takes place, like in the Himalayas and the
Tibetan. Three chief tectonic sub-regions of India are the mighty Himalayas along the north, the
plains of the Ganges and other rivers, and the peninsula. The Himalayas consist primarily of
sediments accumulated over long geological time in the Tethys. The Indo-Gangetic basin with
deep alluvium is a great depression caused by the load of the Himalayas on the continent. The
peninsular part of the country consists of ancient rocks deformed in the past Himalayan-like
collisions. Erosion has exposed the roots of the old mountains and removed most of the
topography. The rocks are very hard, but are softened by weathering near the surface. Before the
Himalayan collision, several tens of millions of years ago, lava flowed across the central part of
peninsular India, leaving layers of basalt rock. Coastal areas like Kachchh show marine deposits
testifying to submergence under the sea millions of years ago.
Seismic Zones of India
The varying geology at different locations in the country implies that the likelihood of damaging
Earthquakes taking place in different locations are different. Thus, a seismic zone map is
required to identify these regions. Based on the levels of intensities sustained during damaging
past earthquakes, the 1970 version of the zone map subdivided India into five zones - I, II, III, IV
and V. The maximum Modified Mercalli (MM) intensity of seismic shaking expected in these
zones was V or less, VI, VII, VIII, and IX and higher, respectively. Parts of Himalayan boundary
in the north and northeast, and the Kachchh area in the west were classified as zone V. The
seismic zone maps are revised from time to time as more understanding is gained on the geology,
the seismotectonics and the seismic activity in the country. The Indian Standards provided the
first seismic zone map in 1962, which was later revised in 1967 and again in 1970. The map has
been revised again in 2002, and it now has only four seismic zones - II, III, IV and V. The areas
falling in seismic zone I in the 1970 version of the map merge with those of seismic zone II.
Also, the seismic zone map in the peninsular region has been modified. Chennai city, now comes
in seismic zone III as against in zone II in the 1970 version of the map. This 2002 seismic zone

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map is not the final word on the seismic hazard of the country, and hence there can be no sense
of complacency in this regard.

Considering the recorded history of earthquakes in the country, seismologists have classified
59% of the land mass of India as prone to earthquakes of different magnitudes - 11% in very
high risk zone V, 18% in high risk zone IV and 30% moderate risk zone III. The capital cities of
Guwahati and Srinagar are located in seismic zone V, while national capital of Delhi is in zone
IV and the mega cities of Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai are in zone III. 38 cities with population
of half a million and above each and a combined population of million are located in these three
regions.

Causes of Earthquakes

Earthquakes are caused by disturbances in the interior of the earth and other causes.

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 1. Tectonic Movements: The disturbances inside the earth are called tectonic movements.
These forces bring about changes on the earth surface and physical features like
mountains, plateaus and rift valleys are formed. Most disastrous earthquakes are caused
by tectonic forces. Tectonic forces create tension and pressure and the stress begins to
build up inside the earth. When the stress tends to be more than what the rocks of the
earth can bear, the rocks are broken and displaced from their state of equilibrium. It is
known as faulting. The energy accumulated during faulting is released. This release of
energy gives rise to mighty waves. These waves originate from a point called Focus in
the interior of the earth and then spread out in all directions. On the surface whatever
comes into their contact begins to vibrate. The chief cause of earthquakes felt often in
California in the USA is often the San Andreas Fault found there.

2. Volcanic Eruptions: The volcanic eruptions are often very violent and cause vibrations
in the earth crust. Sometimes the vent of a volcano is blocked temporarily and explosive
eruption takes place suddenly causing tremors in the earth crust. The Krakatoa that
erupted in 1883 became the cause of a violent earthquake there.

3. Other Reasons: The roofs of underground caves sometimes give way and release great
force to cause minor tremors in the earth crust. Nuclear explosions also release massive
energy to cause tremors in the earth crust.

Effects of Earthquakes

Earthquakes are less advantageous and more harmful to man. Damage done is chiefly in
following respects:

1. Loss of Property: Severe earthquakes reduce to rubble human structures ranging from
huts to palaces and single storey to multi storey buildings. Even pipelines laid under the
ground and railway lines are damaged or displaced. The best example of this type of
damage is Koyana earthquake in 1970.

2. Loss of Life: Earthquake tremors of a few seconds takes the lives of thousands of people.
Many people have been rendered homeless or suffered injuries in various ways.

3. Changes in the course of rivers: On account of the impact of earthquakes, sometimes

rivers also change their course. Consequently, when floods come they play havoc with
people's lives.

4. Tsunamis: The earthquakes in the sea generate massive waves called Tsunami in
Japanese language. It sometimes rises to the height of 20-25 metres. It causes great
damage to life and property of people living in coastal areas as well as to tourists.
Tsunami caused by an earthquake in the sea near Sumatra on 26th Dec, 2004 hit

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 southeast Asian countries including India and Sri Lanka. There was heavy damage in
these countries. More than 3 lakh people died.

5. Mud Fountains: On account of earthquakes of high intensity, warm water and mud
fountains also burst.

6. Cracks in Earth Crust: Earthquake cause cracks in earth's crust anywhere in fields,
roads, parks and even hills. They are thus rendered useless. The San Andreas fault in
California, U.S.A. was created in a similar manner.

Mitigation measures

When an earthquake strikes a building is thrown mostly from side to side, and also up and down
along with the building foundation the building structure tends to stay at rest, similar to a
passenger standing on a bus that accelerates quickly. Building damage is related to the
characteristics of the building, and the duration and severity of the ground shaking. Larger
earthquakes tend to shake longer and harder and therefore cause more damage to structures.

Structural

No buildings can be made 100% safe against earthquake forces. Instead buildings and
infrastructures can be made earthquake resistant to a certain extent depending upon serviceability
requirements. Earthquake resistant design of buildings depends upon providing the building with
strength, stiffness and inelastic deformation capacity, which are great enough to withstand a
given level of earthquake-generated force. This is generally accomplished through the selection
of an appropriate structural configuration and the careful detailing of structural members, such as
beams and columns, and the connections between them. There are several different experimental
techniques that can be used to test the response of structures to verify their seismic performance,
one of which is the use of an earthquake shaking table (a shaking table, or simply shake table).
This is a device for shaking structural models or building components with a wide range of
simulated ground motions, including reproductions of recorded earthquakes time-histories.

Non-structural
The non-engineered traditional construction commonly practiced in different areas of the country
depends greatly on the respective local context of the area. In other words the technologies vary
significantly from area to area. These technologies have evolved and as a result have got
optimized. In India an overwhelming majority of houses, are of non-engineered load bearing
type. These structures, especially houses, have been traditionally built over the past century or
longer, using the locally available materials and the locally practiced technologies that have been
most common in the area, including stone, bricks, earth, lime and timber for walls, and clay tiles,
stone or mud for roofing supported on under-structure made of local timber such as Teak,
Acacia, Neem, Deodar, Pine and also Bamboo. In the recently built structures one also finds a
mix of the traditional and new materials/technology such as cement, concrete and steel. The

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structures have a pitched roof or flat roof, and are single story or double story. After Bhuj
earthquake, significant effort was taken to repair and strengthening of damaged buildings. A
guideline for Repair and strengthening guide for earthquake damaged low rise domestic
buildings in Gujarat is made.

Seismic retrofitting
Seismic retrofitting is the modification of existing structures to make them more resistant to
seismic activity, ground motion, or soil failure due to earthquakes. With better understanding of
seismic demand on the structures and with our recent experiences with large earthquakes near
urban centers, the need of seismic retrofitting is well acknowledged.

Earthquake Do’s and Dont’s

Before & during

• Make your house earthquake resistant and secure heavy furniture and objects

• Choose a couple of family meeting places; pick easy to identify, open and accessible places
that you can easily reach. Prepare to be self-sufficient for a minimum of three days.

• If inside, stay inside."DROP, COVER and HOLD! Drop under firm furniture. Cover as much
of your head and upper body as you can. Hold onto the furniture. Move to an inside wall and sit
with your back to the wall, bring your knees to your chest and cover your head. Stay away from
mirror and window. Do not exit the building during the shaking.

• If outdoors, move to an open area away from all structures, especially buildings, bridges, and
overhead power lines.

After

• Move cautiously, and check for unstable objects and other hazards above and around you.
Check yourself for injuries.

• Anticipate aftershocks, especially if the shaking lasted longer than two minutes.

• Stay out of damaged buildings. Listen to the radio or watch local TV for emergency
information and additional safety instructions.

• Do not drink water from open containers without having examined it and filtered it through a
sieve, a filter or an ordinary clean cloth.

▪ Keep calm, switch on the radio/TV and obey any instructions you hear on it.

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 TSUNAMI

The Earth's lithosphere is broken up into a bunch of discrete pieces, called plates that move
around the surface of the planet. There are seven or eight major plates (depending on how
they are defined) and many minor plates. This motion is driven by the flow of the mantle rock
beneath the plates and by the forces plates exert at their boundaries where they touch each
other. Earthquakes happen when plates move with respect to each other because of the
friction and stress at the edges of plates prevents them from slipping smoothly at their
boundaries. When one plate is forced to dive beneath another plate, there is no way to do it
except with some component of vertical motion creating tsunami.

The tsunami that occurred during 2004 Sumatra-Andaman earthquake of Mw 9.3 was
primarily caused by vertical displacement of the seafloor, in response to slip on the inter-plate
thrust fault. The earthquake and resulting tsunami in the Indian Ocean affected many
countries in Southeast Asia and beyond, including Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Thailand,
the Maldives, Somalia, Myanmar, Malaysia, Seychelles and others. Many other countries,
especially Australia and those in Europe incurred casualties due to the tsunami, because they
had large numbers of citizens traveling in the region on holiday. This tsunami-genic
earthquake was one of the ten worst earthquakes in recorded history, as well as the single
worst tsunami in history. Indonesia was the worst affected country. Beyond the heavy toll on
human lives, the Indian Ocean earthquake has caused an enormous environmental impact that
will affect the region for many years to come. The disaster also caused a substantial geo-
physical impact in Indian Ocean. The disaster invited attention of affected countries for
setting up effective tsunami early warning system and institutional mechanism for handling
disasters.

The Government of India has put in place an Early Warning System for mitigation of such
ocean-genic disasters under the control of Indian National Center for Ocean Information
Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad. A state-of-the-art early warning centre was established with
the necessary computational and communication infrastructure that enables reception of real-
time data from sensors, analysis of the data, generation and dissemination of tsunami
advisories following a standard operating procedure. Seismic and sea-level data are
continuously monitored in the Early Warning Centre using custom-built software application
that generates alarms/alerts in the warning centre whenever a pre-set threshold is crossed.
Tsunami warnings/watches are then generated based on pre-set decision support rules and
disseminated to the concerned authorities for action, as per pre-decided standard operating
procedure. The efficiency of this end-to-end system was proved during the large under-sea
earthquake of 8.4 M that occurred on September 12, 2007 in the Indian Ocean.

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 The 2004 tsunami also prompted NDMA to formulate Tsunami Risk Management Guidelines
to outline inter-agency roles and responsibilities, tsunami risk preparedness, mitigation and
response.

The Guidelines recommends practical and effective ways for awareness generation, capacity
building, education, training and research & development for better tsunami risk
management. The Guidelines explore options for effective dissemination of tsunami alert and
warning messages generated by INCOIS to the concerned agencies and coastal vulnerable
communities exposed to tsunamis in a coordinated manner.

Tsunami Affected Areas

How do landslides, volcanic eruptions, and cosmic collisions generate tsunamis?

A tsunami can be generated by any disturbance that displaces a large water mass from its
equilibrium position. In the case of earthquake-generated tsunamis, the water column is
disturbed by the uplift or subsidence of the sea floor. Submarine landslides, which often
accompany large earthquakes, as well as collapses of volcanic edifices, can also disturb the
overlying water column as sediment and rock slump downslope and are redistributed across

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 the sea floor. Similarly, a violent submarine volcanic eruption can create an impulsive force
that uplifts the water column and generates a tsunami. Conversely, supermarine landslides and
cosmic-body impacts disturb the water from above, as momentum from falling debris is
transferred to the water into which the debris falls. Generally speaking, tsunamis generated
from these mechanisms, unlike the Pacific-wide tsunamis caused by some earthquakes,
dissipate quickly and rarely affect coastlines distant from the source area. What happens to a
tsunami as it approaches land? As a tsunami leaves the deep water of the open ocean and
travels into the shallower water near the coast, it transforms. The tsunami's energy flux, which
is dependent on both its wave speed and wave height, remains nearly constant. Consequently,
as the tsunami's speed diminishes as it travels into shallower water, its height grows. Because
of this shoaling effect, a tsunami, imperceptible at sea, may grow to be several meters or more
in height near the coast. When it finally reaches the coast, a tsunami may appear as a rapidly
rising or falling tide, a series of breaking waves, or even a bore.

Tsunami Warning System

A state-of-the-art early warning centre is established at Indian National Centre for Ocean
Information Services (INCOIS) with all the necessary computational and communication
infrastructure that enables reception of real-time data from all the sensors, analysis of the data,
generation and dissemination of tsunami advisories following a standard operating procedure.
Seismic and sea-level data are continuously monitored in the Early Warning Centre using a
custom-built software application that generates alarms/alerts in the warning centre whenever
a pre-set threshold is crossed. Tsunami warnings/watches are then generated based on pre-set
decision support rules and disseminated to the concerned authorities for action, following a
Standard Operating Procedure. The efficiency of the end-to-end system was proved during the
large under-sea earthquake of 8.4 M that occurred on September 12, 2007 in the Indian Ocean.
In the aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre PTWC
has taken on additional areas of responsibility, including the Indian Ocean, South China Sea,
Caribbean Sea, and Puerto Rico & U.S. Virgin Islands (until June 2007). In order to know the
occurrence of tsunamigenic earthquakes in the past 60 days in and around the Indian ocean
sea. The Indian Tsunami Early Warning System has the responsibility to provide tsunami
advisories to Indian Mainland and the Island regions. Acting as one of the Regional Tsunami
Advisory service Providers (RTSPs) for the Indian Ocean Region, ITEWS also provide
tsunami advisories to the Indian Ocean rim countries along with Australia & Indonesia.

Establishment of India Tsunami Early Warning System (ITEWS)

The December 26, 2004 earthquake and the subsequent tsunami exposed the vulnerability of
the Indian coastline to Oceanic hazards. Following the event, India started its own interim
tsunami warning center in the first quarter of 2005 to issue tsunami bulletins generated from
seismic information. The interim services were succeeded by setting up of a state-of-the-art
Indian Tsunami Early Warning System (ITEWS) at the Indian National Centre for Ocean

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 Information Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad, under the Earth System Sciences Organization
(ESSO), Govt. of India. The system implemented in phases became full-fledged 24X7
operational early warning system in October 2007.

Tsunami Risk and Vulnerability in India

The Indian Ocean Tsunami on 26th December, 2004 which devastated the coastal
communities in 14 countries, caused enormous loss of life and damage to property, assets and
infrastructure in the coastal villages of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Puducherry and
the Andaman & Nicobar Islands. The tsunami risk and vulnerability which the coastal
communities in India are exposed to, even by a distant high intensity earthquake in Indonesia,
came as a shock and surprise to the unsuspecting public. The absence of an effective Tsunami
Early Warning System (TEWS) and the last mile connectivity to disseminate alert and early
warning messages to the coastal communities as well as the lack of public awareness and
emergency response preparedness among the various stakeholder groups made the tsunami
response more difficult and challenging. Most Tsunamis are caused by earthquakes (of
magnitude more than 6.5 on the Richter Scale), with a vertical disruption of the water column
generally caused by a vertical tectonic displacement of the sea bottom along a zone of fracture
in the earth's crust which underlies or borders the ocean floor. Tsunamis are also generated by
volcanic eruptions and submarine landslides, nuclear explosions, and even due to impact or
fall of large size meteorites, asteroids, and comets from outer space. Tsunamigenic zones that
threaten the Indian Coast have been identified by considering the historical tsunamis,
earthquakes, their magnitudes, location of the area relative to a fault, and also by tsunami
modelling. Both the east and west coasts of India and the island regions are likely to be
affected by tsunamis from the five potential source regions, viz., the Andaman-Nicobar-
Sumatra island arc, Indo-Burmese zone, Nascent Boundary (in the central Indian Ocean),
Chagos archipelago and the Makran subduction zone. Even though most people were not
aware of the tsunami risk in India's coastal states, the Indian Ocean Tsunami of 26th
December 2004 exposed the inherent vulnerabilities of the coastal communities in our 7516
km long coastline. The coastal population has been increasing steadily, mostly due to the
expanding scope for exploitation of sea resources and economic activities propelled by
increasing urbanization and industrialization in the coastal districts as well as increasing
employment opportunities due to the unprecedented expansion in tourism-related activities.
However, so far the efforts to strengthen the preparedness of the coastal communities to face
the increasing threats of storm surges, sea level rise, coastal erosion, etc. have been often
restricted to localized campaigns with very limited impact, in spite of the increasing disaster
risk and vulnerability of the coastal communities.

Tsunami Preparedness

Warning System Components and Instruments

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 • A Network of Land-based Seismic Stations for earthquake detection and estimation of
source parameters in the two known tsunamigenic zones (viz. Java-Sumatra-Andaman-
Myanmar belt and the North Arabian Sea) that would affect the Indian Ocean region and
communicating the same to Early Warning Centre in near-real time.

• Detection of Tsunami generation through a network of 10-12 bottom pressure recorders (that
could detect and measure a change in water level of 1 cm at water depths of up to 6 km of
water) around these two tsunamigenic zones,

• Monitoring the progress of Tsunami and Storm Surges through a network of 50 real time
tide gauges,

• Tsunami Modelling (addressing the inundation and amplification all along the coast and
islands for different tsunami originating from different sources),

• Generating and updating a high resolution data base on bathymetry, coastal topography,
coastal land use, coastal vulnerability as well as historic data base on Tsunami and Storm
Surge to prepare and update Storm Surge/Tsunami hazard maps in 1:5,000 scale (for coastal
areas within 1-3 km in general and for 10-25 km at selected areas near coastal water bodies),

• Setting up a dedicated National Early Warning Centre (NEWC) for monitoring tsunamis and
storm surges in India for operation on 24x7 basis and for generation of timely advisories, and

• Capacity building, training and education of all stakeholders on utilisation of the maps,
warning and watch advisories.

Do’s & Dont’s

Before & During

• Find out if your home is in the danger zone.
• Know the height of your street/house above sea level and the distance from the coast.
• People living along the coast should consider an earthquake or strong ground rumbling as a
warning signal.
• Try and climb a raised platform or climb the highest floor of any house or building which you
might see.
• Make evacuation plans and a safe route for evacuation. Stay away from the beach.
• Never go down near the beach to watch the Tsunami.
• Listen to a radio or television to get the latest information and be ready to evacuate if asked to
do so.
• If you hear an official warning, evacuate at once. Return home only after authorities advice it is
safe to do so.

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After
• Stay tuned to the battery-operated radio for the latest emergency information. Help injured and
trapped persons.
• Stay away from flooded and damaged areas until officials say it is safe to return.
• Enter your home with caution.
• Use flashlight when entering damaged houses. Check for electrical short circuit and live wires.
• Check food supplies and test drinking water.
CYCLONE

Tropical Cyclone (TC), also known as „Cyclone‟ is the term used globally to cover tropical
weather systems in which winds equal or exceed „gale force‟ (minimum of 34 knot, i.e., 62
kmph). These are intense low-pressure areas of the earth atmosphere coupled system and are
extreme weather events of the tropics. A tropical cyclone is a storm system characterized by a
large low pressure centre and numerous thunderstorms that produce strong winds and flooding
rain. Tropical cyclones feed on heat released when moist air rises, resulting in condensation of
water vapour contained in the moist air. The term „tropical‟ refers to both the geographic origin
of these systems, which form almost exclusively in tropical regions of the globe, and their
formation in maritime tropical air masses. The term „cyclone‟ refers to such storms‟ cyclonic
nature, with counter clockwise rotation in Northern Hemisphere and clockwise rotation in the
Southern Hemisphere. Depending on its location and strength, a tropical cyclone is called by
many other names, such as hurricane, typhoon, tropical storm, cyclonic storm, tropical
depression and simply cyclone. While tropical cyclones can produce extremely powerful winds
and torrential rain, they are also able to produce high waves and damaging storm surges. They
develop over large bodies of warm water, and lose their strength if they move over land. This is
the reason for coastal regions receiving a significant damage from a tropical cyclone, while
inland regions are relatively safe from their effect. Heavy rains, however, can produce significant
flooding inland, and storm surges can produce extensive coastal flooding up to 40 kilometres
from the coastline. Although their effects on human populations can be devastating, tropical
cyclones can also relieve drought conditions. They also carry heat and energy away from the
tropics and transport it toward temperate latitudes, which make them an important part of the
global atmospheric circulation mechanism. As a result, tropical cyclones help to maintain
equilibrium in the earth‟s troposphere, and to maintain a relatively stable and warm temperature
worldwide. A strong tropical cyclone usually harbours an area of sinking air at the centre of
circulation. This area is called „eye of the cyclone‟. Weather in the eye is normally calm and free
of clouds, although sea may be extremely violent. The eye is normally circular in shape, and may
vary in size from 3 km to 370 km in diameter. Surrounding the eye is the region called „Central
Dense Overcast (CDO)‟, a concentrated area of strong thunderstorm activity. Curved bands of
clouds and thunderstorms trail away from the eye in a spiral fashion. These bands are capable of
producing heavy bursts of rain and wind, as well as tornadoes. If one were to travel between the
outer edge of a hurricane to its centre, one would normally progress from light rain and wind, to
dry and weak breeze, then back to increasingly heavier rainfall and stronger wind, over and over
again with each period of rainfall and wind being more intense and lasting longer.

A long coastline of 7516 Km has resulted in India's exposure to nearly 10% of all tropical
cyclones. On an average, 5-6 tropical cyclones occur in a year in India, mostly in the Bay of

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Bengal. Post-monsoon cyclones occur most frequently and are generally more devastating in
intensity. It is estimated that 58% of the cyclonic storms that form in the Bay of Bengal hit the
coast in October and November.

Classification of Tropical Cyclones

The criteria followed by Meteorological Department of India (IMD) to classify the low pressure
systems in the Bay of Bengal and in the Arabian Sea as adopted by World Meteorological
Organization (WMO) are as under:

Type of Disturbances Associated Wind Speed in the Circulation

Low pressure Area Less than17 knots (<31 kmph)
Depression 17 to 27 knots (31 to 49 kmph)
Deep Depression 28 to 33 knots (50 to 61 kmph)
Cyclonic Storm 34 to 47 knots (62 to 88 kmph)
Severe Cyclonic Storm 48 to 63 knots (89 to 118 kmph)
Very Severe Cyclonic Storm 64 to 119 knots (119 to 221 kmph)
Super Cyclonic Storm 120 knots and above (222 kmph and above)

Destruction caused by Cyclones

There are three elements associated with cyclones which cause destruction during its
occurrence. These are:
Strong Winds/Squall: Cyclones are known to cause severe damage to infrastructure through
high speed winds. Very strong winds which accompany a cyclonic storm damages installations,
dwellings, communications systems, trees etc., resulting in loss of life and property. Gusts are
short but rapid bursts in wind speed are the main cause for damage. Squalls on the other hand,
are longer periods of increased wind speed and are generally associated with the bands of
thunderstorms that make up the spiral bands around the cyclone.
Torrential rains and inland flooding: Torrential rainfall (more than 30 cm/hour) associated
with cyclones is another major cause of damages. Unabated rain gives rise to unprecedented
floods. Rain water on top of the storm surge may add to the fury of the storm. Rain is a serious
problem for the people which become shelter less due to cyclone. Heavy rainfall from a cyclone
is usually spread over wide area and cause large scale soil erosion and weakening of
embankments.
Storm Surge: A Storm surge can be defined as an abnormal rise of sea level near the coast
caused by a severe tropical cyclone; as a result of which sea water inundates low lying areas of
coastal regions drowning human beings and life stock, causes eroding beaches and
embankments, destroys vegetation and leads to reduction of soil fertility.

Cyclones are classified into five different levels on the basis of wind speed. They are further
divided into the following categories according to their capacity to cause damage:-

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Cyclone Category Wind Speed in Km/h Damage Capacity
01 120-150 Minimal
02 150-180 Moderate
03 180-210 Extensive
04 210-250 Extreme
05 250 and above Catastrophic

The Indian subcontinent is one of the worst affected regions in the world. The subcontinent with
a long coastline of 8041 kilometres is exposed to nearly 10 per cent of the world’s tropical
cyclones. Of these, the majority of them have their initial genesis over the Bay of Bengal and
strike the East coast of India. On an average, five to six tropical cyclones form every year, of
which two or three could be severe. More cyclones occur in the Bay of Bengal than the Arabian
Sea and the ratio is approximately 4:1. Cyclones occur frequently on both the coasts (the West
coast - Arabian Sea; and the East coast - Bay of Bengal). An analysis of the frequency of
cyclones on the East and West coasts of India between 1891 and 1990 shows that nearly 262
cyclones occurred (92 of these severe) in a 50 km wide strip above the East coast. Less severe
cyclonic activity has been noticed on the West coast, where 33 cyclones occurred the same
period, out of which 19 of were severe.

Tropical cyclones occur in the months of May-June and October-November. Cyclones of severe
intensity and frequency in the North Indian Ocean are bi-modal in character, with their primary
peak in November and secondary peak in May. The disaster potential is particularly high during
landfall in the North Indian Ocean (Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea) due to the
accompanying destructive wind, storm surges and torrential rainfall. Of these, storm surges cause
the most damage as sea water inundates low lying areas of coastal regions and causes heavy
floods, erodes beaches and embankments, destroys vegetation and reduces soil fertility.
Cyclones vary in diameter from 50 to 320 km but their effects dominate thousands of square
kilometers of ocean surface and the lower atmosphere. The perimeter may measure 1,000 km but
the powerhouse is located within the 100-km radius. Nearer the Eye, winds may hit at a speed of
320 km. Thus, tropical cyclones, characterized by destructive winds, torrential rainfall and storm
surges disrupt normal life with the accompanying phenomena of floods due to the exceptional
level of rainfall and storm surge inundation into inland areas. Cyclones are characterized by their
devastating potential to damage structures, viz. houses; lifeline infrastructure-power and
communication towers; hospitals; food storage facilities; roads, bridges and culverts; cropss etc.
The most fatalities come from storm surges and the torrential rain flooding the lowland areas of
coastal territories.

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Consequences of Tropical Cyclone
The main effects of tropical cyclones include heavy rain, strong wind, large storm
surges near landfall, and tornadoes. The destruction from a tropical cyclone, such as
a hurricane or tropical storm, depends mainly on its intensity, its size, and its location. Tropical
cyclones act to remove forest canopy as well as change the landscape near coastal areas, by
moving and reshaping sand dunes and causing extensive erosion along the coast. Even well
inland, heavy rainfall can lead to mudslides and landslides in mountainous areas.
After the cyclone has passed, devastation often continues. Fallen trees can block roads and delay
rescues, with medical supplies, or slow the repairs to electrical lines, telephone towers or water
pipes, which could put other lives at risk for days or months. Standing water can cause the spread
of disease, and transportation or communication infrastructure may have been destroyed,
hampering clean-up and rescue efforts. Nearly two million people have died globally due to
tropical cyclones. Despite their devastating effects, tropical cyclones are also beneficial, by
potentially bringing rain to dry areas and moving heat from the tropics poleward.

Do’s and Don’ts

Before and During
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• Listen to radio or TV weather reports and alert everyone through a loud speaker or by going
home to home.
• Identify safe shelter in your area. These should be cyclone resistant and also find the closest
route to reach them.
• Keep your emergency kit and basic food supply, medicines, torch and batteries etc. ready.
• Doors, windows, roof and walls should be strengthened before the cyclone season through
retrofitting and repairing. Store adequate food grains and water in safe places.
• Conduct Mock Drills for your family and the community.
• Do not venture into the sea. Stay Indoors under the strongest part of the house if not moved to
the cyclone shelter.
• Remain indoors until advised that the cyclone has passed away.

After
• Do not go out till officially advised that it is safe. If evacuated, wait till advised to go back.
• Use the recommended route to return to your home. Do not rush.
• Be careful of broken powers lines, damaged roads and house, fallen trees etc.

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