News Analysis India

Tag: cyclonic storm

  • Cyclonic Storm Remal Approaches West Bengal, IMD Issues Heavy Rainfall Alert |

    New Delhi: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted heavy rainfall over West Bengal and Odisha as a depression which is moving towards which lies over the Bay of Bengal is likely to move northeastwards and intensify into a cyclonic storm Remal by the evening of May 25 and reach the West Bengal coasts as a severe cyclonic storm by Sunday evening.

    Under the influence of the cyclonic storm, the coastal districts of West Bengal and adjoining districts of North Odisha are likely to witness heavy to very heavy rainfall on May 26 and May 27.

    The IMD has issued a warning for rough sea conditions ad cyclonic storm Remal approaches the West Bengal coast. Weather is expected to worsen by the evening of May 24. The meteorological department advises fishermen to avoid venturing into the Bay of Bengal until the morning of May 27, 2024.

    This is the first cyclone in the Bay of Bengal this pre-monsoon season and will be named Remal, according to a system of naming cyclones in the Indian Ocean region.

    “The system will concentrate into a depression over central Bay of Bengal by Friday morning. It will further intensify into a cyclonic storm on Saturday morning and reach Bangladesh and the adjoining West Bengal coast as a severe cyclonic storm by Sunday evening,” IMD scientist Monica Sharma told PTI.

    According to the IMD, the cyclone could reach a wind speed of 102 kilometres per hour on Sunday.

    The Met office has warned of very heavy rainfall in the coastal districts of West Bengal, north Odisha, Mizoram, Tripura and south Manipur on May 26-27.

    Well-marked Low Pressure Area over westcentral & adjoining south Bay of Bengal moved northeastwards during past 12 hours and lay over the same area at 1730 IST of 23 May. Very likely to concentrate into a Depression over central parts of Bay of Bengal by morning of 24th May. pic.twitter.com/6xnz7g1F2U
    — India Meteorological Department (@Indiametdept) May 23, 2024

    Fisherfolk out at sea have been advised to return to the coast and not venture into the Bay of Bengal until May 27.

    Scientists say cyclonic storms are intensifying rapidly and retaining their potency for longer periods due to warmer sea surface temperatures, a result of oceans absorbing most of the excess heat from greenhouse gas emissions.

    The past 30 years have witnessed the highest sea surface temperatures since records began in 1880.

    According to senior IMD scientist DS Pai, warmer sea surface temperatures mean more moisture, which is favourable for the intensification of cyclones.

    Madhavan Rajeevan, former secretary of the Union Ministry of Earth Sciences, said a sea surface temperature of 27 degrees Celsius and above is needed for a low-pressure system to intensify into a cyclone. The sea surface temperature in the Bay of Bengal is around 30 degrees Celsius at present.

    “The Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea are very warm at present, so a tropical cyclone can easily form,” Rajeevan said.

    But tropical cyclones are not only controlled by the ocean; the atmosphere also plays an important role, especially in terms of vertical wind shear — a change in wind speed and/or wind direction with altitude.

    “A cyclone will not intensify if the vertical wind shear is very large. It will weaken,” Rajeevan said.

    Models suggest the cyclone will not affect the monsoon progress, the senior meteorologist said.

    Pai, however, said it could affect the progress of the monsoon in some parts.

    He told PTI, “Initially, the system will help the monsoon progress over the Bay of Bengal. Thereafter, it will detach from the monsoon circulation and pull a lot of moisture, which could result in a slight delay in the monsoon progress in that area.”

  • Cyclone ‘Sitrang’ likely to bring heavy rain, dampen Diwali cheer in Bengal

    By PTI

    kolkata: The southern districts of West Bengal, including Kolkata, woke up to light rain and an overcast sky on Monday as cyclone ‘Sitrang’ moved towards north Bay of Bengal, raising the likelihood of a downpour during the day and threatening to dampen Diwali festivities.

    The system is expected to make a landfall between Tinkona island and Sandwip in Bangladesh early on October 25, the Met department said. It lay centred around 430 km south of Sagar Island on Monday morning, the department said.

    Sitrang, which is likely to intensify further into a severe cyclonic storm, will bring in its wake heavy to very heavy rain and wind reaching speed of 90 to 100 kmph, gusting to 110 kmph, in the coastal districts of South 24 Parganas, North 24 Parganas and East Midnapore on Monday, the weather office said.

    It will trigger heavy to very heavy rain in North 24 Parganas and South 24 Parganas on Tuesday, it said.

    Kolkata and the adjoining districts of Howrah and Hooghly are set to experience moderate to heavy rainfall on Monday, the Met said.

    The widespread rain, expected later in the day, is likely to cast a shadow on Diwali and Kali Puja celebrations in the state.

    In Kolkata, the wind speed could reach up to 50 kmph, affecting marquees set up for Kali puja celebrations.

    The morning rain, however, could not, dampen the spirits of devotees who turned up in droves early in the day at the popular Kali temples of Kalighat, Dakshineswar and Thanthania in Kolkata.

    The weather office said that the Sunderban region in West Bengal and Bangladesh is likely to get heavily impacted by the cyclone.

    Torrential rain, accompanied by wind gusting up to 100 kmph and high tidal waves, may damage kutcha embankments and roads and disrupt power and communication lines in the region, it said.

    The deputy director general of the regional meteorological centre here, Sanjib Bandopadhyay, has said that the breach of kutcha embankments, owing to the storm surge accompanied by high astronomical tide on new moon, may lead to sea water inundation of low-lying areas.

    Tidal waves are likely to reach a height of six metres owing to the twin effect of the weather system and astronomical tide.

    A Kolkata Municipal Corporation official said steps are being taken to tackle any situation that may emerge in the metropolis owing to Sitrang.

    “All pumping stations are fully active. People living in dilapidated buildings are being shifted to local schools or community halls,” he said.

    Fishermen have been advised not to venture into the sea on October 24 and 25.

    Ferry services in Sunderbans and water-bound tourist activities at seaside resort towns of Digha, Mandarmoni, Shankarpur, Bakkhali and Sagar have also been suspended as a precautionary measure.

    kolkata: The southern districts of West Bengal, including Kolkata, woke up to light rain and an overcast sky on Monday as cyclone ‘Sitrang’ moved towards north Bay of Bengal, raising the likelihood of a downpour during the day and threatening to dampen Diwali festivities.

    The system is expected to make a landfall between Tinkona island and Sandwip in Bangladesh early on October 25, the Met department said. It lay centred around 430 km south of Sagar Island on Monday morning, the department said.

    Sitrang, which is likely to intensify further into a severe cyclonic storm, will bring in its wake heavy to very heavy rain and wind reaching speed of 90 to 100 kmph, gusting to 110 kmph, in the coastal districts of South 24 Parganas, North 24 Parganas and East Midnapore on Monday, the weather office said.

    It will trigger heavy to very heavy rain in North 24 Parganas and South 24 Parganas on Tuesday, it said.

    Kolkata and the adjoining districts of Howrah and Hooghly are set to experience moderate to heavy rainfall on Monday, the Met said.

    The widespread rain, expected later in the day, is likely to cast a shadow on Diwali and Kali Puja celebrations in the state.

    In Kolkata, the wind speed could reach up to 50 kmph, affecting marquees set up for Kali puja celebrations.

    The morning rain, however, could not, dampen the spirits of devotees who turned up in droves early in the day at the popular Kali temples of Kalighat, Dakshineswar and Thanthania in Kolkata.

    The weather office said that the Sunderban region in West Bengal and Bangladesh is likely to get heavily impacted by the cyclone.

    Torrential rain, accompanied by wind gusting up to 100 kmph and high tidal waves, may damage kutcha embankments and roads and disrupt power and communication lines in the region, it said.

    The deputy director general of the regional meteorological centre here, Sanjib Bandopadhyay, has said that the breach of kutcha embankments, owing to the storm surge accompanied by high astronomical tide on new moon, may lead to sea water inundation of low-lying areas.

    Tidal waves are likely to reach a height of six metres owing to the twin effect of the weather system and astronomical tide.

    A Kolkata Municipal Corporation official said steps are being taken to tackle any situation that may emerge in the metropolis owing to Sitrang.

    “All pumping stations are fully active. People living in dilapidated buildings are being shifted to local schools or community halls,” he said.

    Fishermen have been advised not to venture into the sea on October 24 and 25.

    Ferry services in Sunderbans and water-bound tourist activities at seaside resort towns of Digha, Mandarmoni, Shankarpur, Bakkhali and Sagar have also been suspended as a precautionary measure.

  • Low pressure area moves to Gulf of Kutch, may intensify into cyclonic storm in Arabian Sea: IMD

    By PTI

    AHMEDABAD: The remnant of cyclone Gulab has turned into a depression, moved into the Gulf of Kutch and is likely to further intensify into a cyclonic storm in the Arabian Sea, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Thursday.

    Due to this weather system, heavy rains were witnessed in Gujarat’s Saurashtra region in the last 24 hours. The IMD has predicted heavy rains in the state’s coastal districts over the next two days.

    “Yesterday’s well-marked low pressure area over south Gujarat region and adjoining Gulf of Khambhat moved west-northwestwards and emerged into the Gulf of Kutch, concentrated into a depression and lay centred there at 5:30 am today. It is about 50 km east-northeast of Devbhoomi Dwarka (Gujarat), 90 km east-southeast of Naliya (in Kutch) and 340 km east-southeast of Karachi (Pakistan),” an IMD release said.

    The weather department said that it is very likely to move west-northwestwards and intensify into a deep depression over northeast Arabian Sea off north Gujarat coast during the next 12 hours. “It is then very likely to move further west-northwestwards and intensify into a cyclonic storm during the subsequent 24 hours. Thereafter, it is likely to continue to move west-northwestwards towards Pakistan-Makran coasts, moving away from the Indian coast,” the IMD said.

    Heavy rainfall is expected for the next two days in the coastal districts of Jamnagar, Porbandar, Dwarka and Kutch, it said, and asked fishermen not to venture into the sea. Due to the present weather system, Junagadh, Amreli, Dwarka, Jamnagar and Rajkot districts received heavy rains in the last 24 hours, the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) said.

    In the 24-hour period ending at 6 am on Thursday morning,Visavadar taluka in Junagadh district recorded 292 mm, Lilya in Amreli district received 141 mm downpour, while Khambhaliya and Kalyanpur in Devbhumi Dwarka distric got 140 mm and 135 mm rainfall, respectively, it added.

  • Cyclone Yaas: IMD says depression in Bay of Bengal to develop into cyclonic storm by May 24

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: A low-pressure area in the Bay of Bengal has intensified into a depression that will cross the West Bengal and Odisha coasts on May 26 as a “very severe cyclonic storm”, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Sunday.

    The depression is expected to intensify into a cyclonic storm, “Yaas”, by Monday, it added.

    “It (the depression) is very likely to move north-northwestwards and intensify into a cyclonic storm by 24th May morning and further into a very severe cyclonic storm during the subsequent 24 hours.

    ALSO READ | Odisha government asks Collectors to stock up on essentials ahead of Cyclone Yaas

    It would continue to move north-northwestwards, intensify further and reach Northwest Bay of Bengal near West Bengal and north Odisha coasts by 26th May morning,” the Cyclone Warning Division of the IMD said.

    “It is very likely to cross north Odisha-West Bengal between the Paradip and Sagar islands by evening of 26th May as a very severe cyclonic storm,” it added.

    The state governments as well as the Centre are preparing for the cyclone that will bring winds with a speed ranging 155-165 kmph and gusting to 185 kmph.

    Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday called for a timely evacuation of those involved in offshore activities as he chaired a high-level meeting to review the preparedness of the state and central agencies to deal with the situation arising out of Cyclone Yaas.

    ALSO READ | PM Modi reviews preparedness to tackle Cyclone Yaas, wants no disruption in Covid treatment, vaccination

    He asked officials to work in close coordination with the states to ensure safe evacuation of people from the high-risk areas and stressed the need to ensure that the time duration of outages of the power supply and communication network is minimum and these links are restored swiftly, a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said.

    Modi also asked the officials to ensure proper coordination and planning with the states to ensure that no disruption is caused to the treatment of COVID-19 patients in hospitals and vaccination against the viral disease.

    He called for involving various stakeholders such as the coastal communities and industries by directly reaching out to them, the PMO said.

  • Satellite images, path and map of the cyclonic storm

    amil Nadu is bracing for the impact of another cyclone as Cyclonic Storm Burevi is all set to cross the southern coast of the state between Kanniyakumari and Pamban during the night of December 3 (Thursday) and the early morning of December 4 (Friday).

    When Cyclone Burevi makes landfall on the coast of Tamil Nadu, it is likely to carry winds with a speed of 70-80 kmph gusting to 90 kmph.

    The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Wednesday said in a bulletin that the impact of the cyclonic storm on coastal districts in south Tamil Nadu is very likely to be seen from Thursday forenoon – initially from Ramanathapuram district and then gradually from Kanniyakumari district.

    “The Cyclonic Storm ‘Burevi’ over southwest Bay of Bengal moved west-northwestwards with a speed of 18 kmph during past six hours and lay centered at 0830 hrs IST of today, the 02nd December 2020 over southwest Bay of Bengal, about 200 km east of Trincomalee (Sri Lanka), 420 km east-southeast of Pamban (India) and 600 km nearly east-northeast of Kanniyakumari (India).

    “It is very likely to intensify further during next 12 hours. It is very likely to move west-northwestwards and cross Sri Lanka coast to north of Trincomalee during evening/night of 2nd December as a Cyclonic Storm with a wind speed of 80-90 kmph gusting to 100 kmph. It is very likely to move nearly west-northwestwards thereafter, emerge into Gulf of Mannar and adjoining Comorin area on 3rd December morning,” the IMD said in a bulletin.

    The weather department said the cyclonic storm with wind speed of 70-80 kmph, gusting to 90 kmph, would be centred very close to Pamban around the noon of December 3 or Thursday.

    The IMD has issued a red warning for tomorrow for south Tamil Nadu and south Kerala, where heavy to very heavy rainfall is expected at most places. Further, extremely heavy rainfall is also likely over some places in these areas on the same date.

    The alert has been issued for Ramanathapuram, Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli, Kanniyakumari, Tenkasi and Sivagangai districts in south Tamil Nadu and Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta and Alappuzah districts in south Kerala.