1999 Orissa Cyclone - Aftermath

Aftermath

Indian Red Cross Society (IRCS) immediately responded with emergency relief, as did BAPS Care International (BAPSCI). The Orissa state branch extended the emergency relief phase to a three-month relief operation and a six-month rehabilitation program with the help of the Federation. The overall humanitarian response spanned well into the late 2000. The Orissa State Branch (OSB) immediately shipped emergency buffer stocks from the Indian Red Cross headquarters in New Delhi. BAPSCI dispatched about 2,340 volunteers to 84 villages greatly affected by the storm. BAPSCI also cremated 700 bodies and buried 3,500 cattle carcasses because many people were superstitious about touching the dead bodies of those they did not know. Three villages were "adopted" by BAPSCI in January 2000 to rebuild, Chakulia, Banipat, and Potak, all in Jagatsinghpur. A total of 200 concrete homes were constructed, as well as two concrete schools and two village tube-wells. The project was finally completed in May 2002, two and a half years after the cyclone hit. As of October 30, 1999, 50,000 people were evacuated from low-lying flooded areas on the coast of the Ganjam and Jagatsinghpur districts. More people on the coast of Paradeep were evacuated by the Orissa Government.

The Federation withdrew 200,000 CHF from its Disaster Relief Emergency Fund to send to India, but the Indian Government refused the money, saying the cyclone was not a national disaster.

Many people died of starvation and diseases after the storm, since rescue workers could not reach everyone in time.