Acyclonic storm developing in the Bay of Bengal is expected to hit the coasts of West Bengal and neighbouring Bangladesh as a severe cyclone on May 26 (Saturday), the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Thursday.
According to the Met Department, the cyclonic storm Remal is expected to hit some districts of West Bengal with wind speeds between 80 and 100 kilometres per hour on May 25, and with a wind speed of 100 kilometres per hour in Bangladesh.
The storm is likely to turn into a deep depression on May 25 and as a severe cyclonic storm on May 26, the weather office said.
The IMD has issued an orange alert for light to moderate rainfall in Kolkata, Howrah, Nadia, Jhargram, North 24 Parganas, South 24 Parganas and Purba Medinipur districts.
“A well-marked low pressure area over west-central and adjoining south Bay of Bengal moved northeastwards during the past 12 hours, concentrated into a depression and lay centred at 5:30 am on May 24 over central Bay of Bengal, about 800 km south-southwest of Khepupara (Bangladesh) and 810 km south of Canning (West Bengal),” the IMD said in its bulletin.
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“It is very likely to continue to move northeastwards and intensify further into a cyclonic storm over east-central Bay of Bengal by the morning of May 25. Subsequently, it would move nearly northwards, intensify into a severe cyclonic storm by the evening of May 25,” it added.
“Continuing to move nearly northward, it is very likely to cross Bangladesh and adjoining West Bengal coasts between Sagar Island and Khepupara around the midnight of May 26 as a severe cyclonic storm,” the IMD said.
