Bhubaneswar: Amidst the ongoing pandemic, Tropical cyclone ‘YAAS’ devastated the country’s eastern coasts on Wednesday i.e. 26.05.21 dumping heavy rain, damaging houses, farmlands and the electrical network. TPCODL prepared the Disaster Management Plan (DMP) well in advance to mitigate the risk based on learning from previous experiences. Under this, a structured approach was defined covering preventive measures, defined roles and responsibility for disaster management along with plans to arrange required material/machinery in case of exigency.
As soon as the Cyclonic Storm ‘Yaas’ was announced, TPCODL immediately identified the area which were expected to be impacted by the severe cyclonic storm, well in advance. In line with defined DMP, approx. 10,000 present, and additional manpower along with adequate materials and machineries were deployed at the likely affected areas to take up restoration work immediately. Quick restoration teams were formed within Sub Divisions and clear roles & responsibilities were defined to complete the restoration in the least time possible.
The after-effects of YAAS has been devastating, amongst the most severely affected areas are sections of Kendrapada (Area – Aul, Rajkanika, Rajnagar-2), Marshaghai (Area – Babar, Mahakalpada), Paradeep(Area- Chatua) and Jagatsinghpur (Area-Balikuda-2). The entire area has been submerged in water, roads have been blocked due to fallen trees, conductors have snapped under the weight of branches, and most of the area is suffering with heavy waterlogging.
Post cyclone, restoration work was initiated on war footing. Power supply to all hospitals, COVID Care Centres, ICU units and Oxygen Plants were providedwithin a record time of 2 Hrs. Power supply at all the District HQ’s/CHC were also restored on a priority basis.
Speaking on restoration of power supply Mr. M Shenbagam, CEO, TPCODL said, “The key to mitigate the risk of cyclone and reduce its impact, is to be well prepared with pre-monsoon activities like tree trimming, rectifying identified vulnerable hotspots, preventive maintenance of distribution transformers etc. Having done that, we reduced its impact and jumped into action with all the resources for quick restoration to ensure customers are least affected.”
With continuous monitoring, systematic patrolling of feeders and clearing of network lines, TPCODL was able to restore 70% of the power supply within 8 hrs of landfall. Additionally, TPCODL was able to maintain 100% power supply to the twin cities (Cuttack and BBSR) due to clear focus area and systematic maintenance of the network.
As of now, 85% of the network has been restored and power supply is provided to the affected areas. For the remaining 15%, we are waiting for the water to recede to restore the balance supply. TPCOLD Team is working round the clock to restore power supply in phase manner with safety and caution.
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