India has evacuated more than 1 million people on the country’s eastern coast as a devastating cyclone barrels toward the country.
The state of Odisha ordered the emergency evacuations as Tropical Cyclone Fani — with maximum sustained winds of 155 miles per hour — continued to gain strength in the Bay of Bengal, according to CNN.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Thursday that the government was preparing for the aftermath.
“The Central Government is ready to provide all possible assistance that would be required. Prayers for the safety and well-being of our citizens,” Modi wrote on Twitter.
Cyclone Fani is equivalent in intensity to a Category 4 hurricane and is 2 mph away from a Category 5 hurricane, CNN said.
The cyclone is expected to make landfall at the town of Puri in the eastern state of Odisha on Friday, according to the India Meteorological Department.
A super-cyclone battered the coast of Odisha for 30 hours in 1999, killing 10,000 people.
With wires