Cyclone Remal: ‘Remal’ will take the form of a severe cyclonic storm, high alert in Bengal, know these 10 points -Newsops

Cyclone Ramal, which has arisen in the Bay of Bengal, may intensify into a severe cyclonic storm. Cyclone Ramal is set to hit the southern coast of Bengal and some coastal parts of India on Sunday evening. The Bangladesh Meteorological Department has predicted winds with a speed of up to 130 km (81 miles) per hour, high waves in the sea and strong storm during this period. Bangladesh on Sunday started evacuating people from coastal areas and shifting them to safer places. The cyclone is likely to intensify by evening or midnight with possible high tide and heavy rainfall in the country’s coastal districts of Satkhira and Cox’s Bazar.

According to the cyclone warning bulletin, cyclone ‘Remal’ is likely to move northwards and cross the Sagar Island-Khepupara coast of West Bengal near Mongla by evening or midnight. IMD scientist Somnath Dutta said, “In the last 6 hours, cyclone ‘Remal’ is moving towards the northern Bay at a speed of 13 km/hr… It is southwest of Khepupara, Bangladesh… Currently, the wind speed is 95-105 km/hr… It will move northwards, it will cross the area between Sagar Island and Khepupara at midnight on Sunday… The maximum wind speed will be 110-120 km/hr.”

According to the Meteorological Department, extremely heavy rainfall has been predicted in the coastal districts of West Bengal and North Odisha on May 26 and 27. Heavy rainfall may also occur in parts of Northeast India due to the impact of Ramal on May 27 and 28.

Know about cyclone Ramal in 10 points

1. In its latest bulletin on Sunday morning, the IMD said Ramal moved nearly northwards at a speed of 7 kmph and was centred about 260 km south-southwest of Khepupara (Bangladesh), 310 km south of Mongla (Bangladesh), 240 km south.

2. The weather department said Ramal is expected to cross West Bengal and adjoining Bangladesh coasts between Sagar Island and Khepupara around Sunday midnight with a strong wind speed of 110-120 kmph gusting to 135 kmph. At the time of landfall, a storm surge of up to 1.5 metres is expected to inundate low-lying areas of coastal West Bengal and Bangladesh. In view of the cyclone, the coastal districts of North 24 Parganas and South 24 Parganas in West Bengal are on red alert on May 26 and 27 as extremely heavy rainfall has been predicted in some areas.
3. An orange alert has been issued for Kolkata, Howrah, Nadia and East Medinipur districts, with the weather office warning of wind speeds between 80 and 90 kilometres per hour and gusts up to 100 kilometres per hour. Heavy to very heavy rainfall has been predicted at some places on May 26 and 27.
4. The weather department said Ramal is expected to cross West Bengal and adjoining Bangladesh coasts between Sagar Island and Khepupara around midnight on Sunday with a wind speed of 110-120 kmph gusting to 135 kmph. At the time of landfall, a storm surge of up to 1.5 metres is expected to inundate low-lying areas of coastal West Bengal and Bangladesh.
5. The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has deployed 12 teams and five additional teams have been put on standby in West Bengal ahead of the cyclone’s landfall. Rescue and relief teams of the Indian Army and the Indian Navy have been kept on standby.
6. Speaking to the media, NDRF East Zone Commander, Gurminder Singh said, “…Chances are that Cyclone Remal will make landfall tonight at midnight. As per IMD predictions, at the time of landfall, the sustained wind speed will be 120-130 km/hr… As of now, 14 NDRF teams have been deployed in South Bengal… We can expect moderate, heavy and even severe rainfall, it will not be as severe as we want. Vulnerable population will be shifted to cyclone shelters, there are no fishermen in the sea…”
7. The IMD has warned of localised flooding and significant damage to vulnerable structures, power and communication lines, unpaved roads, crops and orchards in South and North 24 Parganas districts. People have been asked to stay indoors and not go out, especially near the sea. At the same time, coastal districts of Balasore, Bhadrak and Kendrapara in northern Odisha may receive heavy rainfall on May 26-27, while heavy rain is expected in Mayurbhanj on May 27. Extremely heavy rainfall is likely over Assam and Meghalaya and heavy to very heavy rainfall over Manipur, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and Tripura on May 27 and 28.
8. The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) said nine disaster relief teams have been put on standby at Haldia and Fraserganj in West Bengal and Paradip and Gopalpur in Odisha. It said all precautionary measures have been taken to ensure that there is no loss of life and property at sea. The ICG said its remote operating stations at Haldia and Paradip are alerting fishing vessels and merchant vessels about the cyclone through VHF (very high frequency) transmissions. All its ships and aircraft were put on standby for search and rescue operations.
9. Meanwhile, authorities at Kolkata’s Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport have decided to suspend flight operations for 21 hours from Sunday afternoon to deal with cyclone Remal in the state. Ferry services at Diamond Harbour have also been suspended.
10. All cargo and container handling operations at the city’s Syama Prasad Mukherjee Port will remain suspended for 12 hours from 6 pm on Sunday to 6 am on Monday due to the cyclone. Fishermen have been warned to stay away from the north Bay of Bengal till the morning of May 27.

Latest India News