Before Cyclone Arnab reached the coast, Nandankanan Zoological Park near Bhubaneswar set up a 24-hour control room, ran mock drills across its ranges and inspected its enclosures and drainage. The storm made landfall in Andhra Pradesh, then did its heaviest damage in southern Odisha with rain: 546 millimetres in 24 hours at one station in Ganjam district. What no report PNN has found says is how the zoo came through it.
What Cyclone Arnab actually did
| Landfall | The Andhra Pradesh coast, early on 28 October (reports place the crossing in the early hours, near Yanam) |
| Intensity | A very severe cyclonic storm at its peak, weakening quickly after landfall |
| By 29 October | Classified by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) as a depression, expected to weaken further |
The heaviest rainfall figure came from Patrapur in Ganjam district: 546 mm in 24 hours. Behind it were G. Udayagiri at 462.4 mm, Sanakhemundi at 388 mm, Raikia at 384.8 mm and Sorada at 375 mm.
What that produced:
- Around 300 villages in Ganjam cut off by flooding, with more than 2,000 people stranded
- About 42,500 people affected in Ganjam and 20,000 in Gajapati
- About 300 metres of National Highway 326 washed away in Mohana block
- The Rushikulya river at 19 metres at Purushottampur, against a danger level of 16.8 metres
- At least nine trains cancelled and 14 diverted
- 54 response teams deployed: 3 NDRF, 27 ODRAF and 24 Fire Service
In Odisha, this was a water event
The damage reported so far from Odisha is flooding, landslides and washed-out roads, not wind damage. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi said heavy rain linked to Arnab affected at least 17 southern districts.
A cyclone that arrives as wind threatens structures, trees and power lines. A cyclone that arrives as rain threatens drainage, low ground and anything that cannot move to higher ground on its own. For a zoo, those are different problems.
What the zoo said it was doing
Officials of Nandankanan Zoological Park, in an announcement reported on 27 October, the day before landfall, described these preparations for the zoo and the adjoining State Botanical Garden:
| Measure | Detail |
|---|---|
| Control room | Running 24 hours |
| Drills | Range-wise mock drills conducted |
| Coordination | With police, Fire Services and the Electricity Department |
| Inspections | Vulnerable structures, animal enclosures, electrical installations, roads and drainage systems |
| Supplies | Veterinary supplies and food on standby |
| Shelter | Safe shelters on standby |
PNN could read only part of the original report, which is behind a paywall. Further reported details, including rescue equipment and the handling of vulnerable species, are not included here because PNN could not confirm them.
A routine playbook, not a one-off
Nandankanan’s checklist is not new. Before Cyclone Dana in 2024 and Cyclone Montha in 2025, the zoo also reported control rooms, mock drills and precautionary measures, and closed to visitors on the days of the storm. Drainage inspections appear on the Arnab list, and drainage is what a rainfall event tests.
That may be routine thoroughness rather than foresight. Either way, a published checklist is more than most disaster preparation offers. But a checklist describes intent. It does not show that the plan worked.
Where the zoo is, and where the flooding was
Nandankanan sits at Barang, near Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, in central coastal Odisha. The worst flooding reported so far was in Ganjam and Gajapati, in the south of the state.
The preparation story and the flooding story are travelling together online, and a reader could conclude that the zoo was devastated. No report PNN has found says that. What is known is that the zoo prepared and that the heaviest rainfall figures came from districts some distance away.
Why the zoo takes cyclones seriously
The planning has a history. When Cyclone Fani hit Odisha in May 2019, it uprooted and broke trees, damaged enclosures and twisted electrical installations at Nandankanan. Local reports at the time called it the worst calamity to hit the zoo since the 1999 super cyclone. The zoo and the botanical garden closed from 5 May and reopened after restoration, and the casualty figures for animals and birds were not confirmed in the first reports.
Securing a zoo of that size against a storm is an operation in its own right, and it is one that rarely gets reported, before or after.
What nobody has said
Every report PNN has found on the zoo is from before landfall. They describe what the zoo intended to do. As of 30 October, PNN could not find a post-storm statement. There is no public answer to:
- Were any animals moved to shelters, and which?
- Was there flooding, structural damage or power loss inside the park?
- Are all the animals accounted for and unharmed?
- Is the zoo open?
The preparation was announced. The outcome has not been. PNN will update this report when the zoo issues a post-storm statement.
What zoo cyclone planning involves
Animals cannot be evacuated the way people can. Large carnivores and herds of hoofed animals cannot be moved safely at short notice in a storm, so planning is mostly about sheltering in place: secure night houses and reinforced enclosures.
Feed and water are the first failure point. Supply chains break for days after a cyclone, which is why stocks are laid in beforehand.
Power is the second. Pumps, fencing, incubators and veterinary refrigeration depend on it, which is why electricity departments sit on coordination lists.
Drainage is the third, and the most underestimated. Enclosures with moats, pits or sunken dens flood from the bottom up.
Veterinary readiness is the last. Injuries follow debris, stress and contaminated water, and medical kits staged in advance allow treatment before roads reopen.
Pets News Network is India’s first dedicated media platform for the pet and animal industry. This report is based on information published before and after the cyclone’s landfall; no post-storm assessment from the zoo was available as of 30 October 2026. For breaking global pet news, brand coverage, and advertising enquiries, contact: info@petsnewsnetwork.com
