Another cyclone due to hit India

When we were in India a couple of weeks ago, one of the things that struck me most was the massive upheaval caused by Cyclone Phailin that had hit the coast a few weeks earlier. 

Crops were ruined, roads flooded and buckled, houses damaged, and many more people were living in poverty as they struggled to make ends meet. When you live a subsistence lifestyle, there is no nest egg to fall back on when disaster strikes.

At St Josephs School, where we worked for the week, the impact was that many parents were coming in saying they had no money to pay for school fees, and this had been the case for October and again in November. The school, which also runs on a very minimal amount of reserves, had used up its savings and was living on good will from the banks, plus prayers that things would improve next month, and there would be a good injection of cash.

So, imagine the despair being felt with the information from the met office that there is a new cyclone heading their way, due to reach the coast-line of Andhra Pradesh tonight.

Below, is the report about it from the BBC website, (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-25047158), and all I would ask is that if you are into praying, then please pray for Janaki and co, as they endure the storm, assist with humanitarian aid afterwards, and find a way to keep going financially.

Thousands of people have been evacuated from coastal areas in eastern India, as a strong cyclone approaches.

Cyclone Helen, which is generating wind speeds of up to 120km h (75mph), is expected to make landfall in Andhra Pradesh state later on Friday.

India's weather office says the cyclone is expected to be accompanied by storm surges of up to 1.5m (5ft).

At least 27 people died when a stronger cyclone, Phailin, hit India's eastern coast last month.

The Indian Meteorological Department has classed Cyclone Helen as "severe" and has warned of "extensive damage to thatched roofs and huts".

Evacuation

It says there will be "minor damage to power and communication lines due to uprooting of large avenue trees".

Twenty rescue teams had been deployed in the flood zone, a spokeswoman for the National Disaster Management Agency, Tripti Parule, told the AFP news agency.

"Evacuations of thousands has already taken place and provision for food, water and shelter are also on track," she said, adding that the aim was for "zero casualties".

Last month Cyclone Phailin destroyed tens of thousands of homes, uprooted trees and blocked roads in Orissa and Andhra Pradesh states.

Hundreds of thousands of people were evacuated ahead of Phailin, which was classified as a "very severe" cyclone.