When the pow­er­ful Cyclone Hud­hud swept into the Bay of Ben­gal coastal areas
of India dis­as­ter author­i­ties called on radio ama­teurs to help out.

Nation­al Coor­di­na­tor for Dis­as­ter Com­mu­ni­ca­tion, Jayu Bhide VU2JAU said,
“In Odis­sa there are six hams work­ing hard to main­tain the communication
cov­er­ing the state.

“The effect of Hud­hud is now reduced and few deaths have been reported.”
The media claimed that at least six deaths had occurred.

That was good news for Odis­sa because locals feared the bad weath­er could
be a repeat of the very severe storm Phailin in 2013.

Before Hud­hud with winds up to 200 km/h made land­fall dam­ag­ing buildings,
pow­er sys­tems and the loss of com­mu­ni­ca­tion in many areas, thou­sands of people
were evac­u­at­ed to shelters.

While the worst of strong winds and heavy rain is over, the cyclone can still
cause flash flood­ing and fur­ther dam­age. A full assess­ment must wait until
the storm moves com­plete­ly on.

Jayu VU2JAU said that active from the Bhu­vanesh­war area are Preeti VU3UFX,
Rajesh VU3PLP and Samir VU2AOR.

In the Sam­balpur area are Dilip VU2DPI who is con­trol of a net­work of Shantanu
 VU2SIC and Pawan VU2PGU.

These have been on air using 7140 MHz and have kept their sta­tions open 24
hours a day.

In the Andhra coastal area the total com­mu­ni­ca­tion is han­dled by the National
Insti­tute of Ama­teur Radio, and is now under control.

Jayu VU2JAU from the IARU mem­ber Ama­teur Radio Soci­ety of India (ARSI), is
mon­i­tor­ing emer­gency traf­fic from his home QTH in Gwalior.

— Jim Lin­ton VK3PC, Chair­man IARU Region 3 Dis­as­ter Com­mu­ni­ca­tions Committee.