Tropical Cyclone Phailin, now classified as a "Super Cyclonic Storm" with 160 mph sustained winds, is about 20 hours away from landfall in NE India. It looks like it will hit about 125 miles NE of the city of Visakhapatnam, possibly very close to the town of Gopalpur which has several beachside resorts. This storm is a huge one that nearly covers the entire Bay of Bengal and is expected to pretty much maintain its strength up until landfall.

I don't think I have to tell anyone that is a close follower of these forums how dangerous this storm is. The hope is that its relatively slow movement (8-10 mph) and early warnings will allow most people to get out of the way. The downside is that slow movement may also generate an even higher than would normally be expected storm surge. A 1999 similar storm produced a 26' surge and I would think this one could equal or exceed that.