Odisha braces for cyclone, keeps disaster response teams on standby for heavy rains

Bhubaneswar, May 6: Odisha Government on Friday braced for cyclone as the low pressure area over the South Andaman Sea and adjoining southeast Bay of Bengal built up.

According to officials, the low pressure could intensify into a depression in the next 48 hours, officials said.

          Odisha’s Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) PK Jena said 17 teams of NDRF, 20 teams of ODRAF and 175 fire services teams have been put on high alert while Director-General of Fire Services SK Upadhaya said all leaves of fire services personnel have been cancelled.

          The weather office said that favourable conditions exist in the sea for the creation of a cyclonic storm, it said.

          India Meteorological Department (IMD) Director-General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said no forecast has yet been issued for a possible cyclone.

          However, fishermen have been warned as the sea conditions will be rough with gusting winds reaching a speed of 75 kmph.

          The low-pressure area is very likely to move north-westwards and intensify into a depression over the southeast Bay of Bengal, and into a cyclonic storm over the east-central Bay of Bengal, India Meteorological Department (IMD) Director-General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said.

          It is likely to reach the coast on May 10, he said.

          “We have not yet made any forecast on where it will make landfall. We have also not mentioned anything on the possible wind speed during the landfall,” Mohapatra said.