An intense cyclone is expected to hit the Bay of Bengal on May 23, prompting the India Meteorological Department (IMD) to issue an advisory for fishermen against venturing into the sea off the coasts of north Odisha and West Bengal.
Director of the IMD’s Visakhapatnam Cyclone Warning Centre, Sunanda, told newswire ANI that fishermen must return by Thursday as there is a possibility of very heavy rainfall with high winds in central parts of the Bay of Bengal. She said that a low-pressure area is expected to form over the Southwest Bay of Bengal around May 22, move further northeastwards and intensify into a depression over the central Bay of Bengal by the morning of May 24.
“….along the coast over the northern part of Odisha and West Bengal, there is a likelihood of heavy to very heavy rain with high wind. So fishermen are advised not to venture out in the sea from these coasts during May 23 to 24,” she told ANI. Besides Odisha, the cyclone is also expected to impact Maharashtra and Gujarat between May 23 and May 27, according to the Met Department forecast. Hence, the weather office has predicted heavy rainfall for Gujarat and Mumbai around May 28, 2024. On Wednesday, the weather forecasting agency stated that a low-pressure area had formed over the southwest adjoining Westcentral Bay of Bengal.
Light rainfall in these states till May 23
The weather office has predicted light rainfall in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, and other states until May 23. The Met department has also predicted light to moderate rainfall, thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds for Karnataka, Puducherry, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Lakshadweep, and Telangana until May 23.
Meanwhile, Kerala has been witnessing heavy rainfall over the past few days. The state government has urged residents to exercise vigil, particularly those in hilly and coastal areas. Several parts of Thiruvananthapuram city and its suburbs experienced flooding after heavy rainfall on May 18, inundating houses and shops in the southern district.