Fisherman anchoring their boats in Hooghly river in West Bengal ahead on Cyclone Amphan

SUPER CYCLONE DOWNGRADED TO EXTREMELY SEVERE CYCLONIC STORM

The Indian Metrological Department has said that Cyclone Amphan is likely to be the worst since 1999, in which over 9,000 people were killed in Odisha. But as the states embark on a massive evacuations drill, the cyclone has lost some of its strength.

However, it still packs enough force to pulverise coastal districts of Odisha and West Bengal.

The gale-force wind, blowing at a speed of 240 to 250 kmph and gusting to 275 kmph at one point, had lost intensity and was moving at a speed of 200 to 210 kmph, gusting to 230 kmph on Tuesday evening.

The weather department has said the storm could destroy standing crops, damage mud and thatch houses, and disrupt power and communication lines in coastal districts of the two eastern states.

The IMD has advised people to remain at home and warned against opening markets in and around affected districts on Wednesday.

“Storm surge of 4 to 5 metres above astronomical tide is likely to inundate low lying areas of South and North 24 Parganas and about 3 to 4 metres over low lying areas of East Midnapore district of West Bengal during the time of landfall,” the weatherman has said. These districts had suffered the most during cyclone ‘Bulbul’ and ‘Fani’ last year.

IMD Director-General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said since the cyclone is gradually weakening, its impact is unlikely to be very severe in Odisha.

However, coastal districts like Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Bhadrak and Balasore are likely to be battered by heavy rains and high-velocity winds from Tuesday evening, he said.

CYCLONE AMPHAN PROJECTED PATH AND LANDFALL

Cyclone Amphan is expected to make landfall between Digha in West Bengal and Hatiya Island in Bangladesh on Wednesday, May 20. The cyclone will likely cross the coast in the afternoon or evening as ‘very severe cyclonic storm’ with a maximum wind speed of 185 kmph.

Plotted using Google Maps below is the excepted path of Cyclone Amphan over the next two days. The path has been plotted based on information released by the India Meteorological Department on Tuesday afternoon. It’s a rough estimate of Cyclone Amphan’s expected progress. The various pins on the map below offer an idea of the location of Cyclone Amphan at a particular point; tap on the pins to know more.