AGARTALA / NEW DELHI, May 3 (TIWN): Fani crossed the Odisha Coast, close to Puri, between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. local time Friday, thus making it an official landfall, the India Meteorological Department said. Parts of north east India like Assam, Meghalaya and Sikkim will also experience heavy rainfall and thunderstorms due to similar weather conditions. Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura will experience fairly widespread rain.

At landfall, Fani was classified as an Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm with winds of 180-190 km/h (112-118 mph) with gusts to 200 km/h (124 mph), which is equal to a Category 3 hurricane in the Atlantic or East Pacific oceans.

Over one million people were evacuated ahead of the cyclone's strike on the eastern India coastline. One government official said the evacuation effort is the largest in the nation's history. Nearly 100,000 of those evacuated are from the city of Puri alone.  

The city of Puri could be dealt a catastrophic blow from Fani. Officials are concerned about the welfare of the city's 858-year-old Jagannath temple during Fani's onslaught, according to BBC News.

Fani lost some wind intensity prior to landfall, but it is expected to remain a dangerous cyclone as it continues inland across eastern India and into Bangladesh through Saturday.