Heavy rain continued to batter Odisha on Thursday as the depression in the Bay of Bengal turned into a deep depression and is moving toward the coast. This prompted the state government to deploy personnel and machinery in identified vulnerable districts to handle the situation, according to an official.
Almost all regions of the state, particularly the coastal and southern areas, have experienced heavy rainfall since Wednesday. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a heavy rain alert for all 30 districts of Odisha on Thursday.
The IMD, in a statement, said that the deep depression formed on Wednesday night over the Bay of Bengal is moving towards the coast at a speed of 17 kmph.
“The system at 5.30 AM of Thursday lays centered at about 190 km south-southeast of Gopalpur, 190 km east-southeast of Kalingapatnam (Andhra Pradesh), 230 km south of Puri (Odisha), 250 km east of Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh) and 310 km south-southwest of Paradip (Odisha),” the weather office said.
The IMD predicted that the system is very likely to cross Odisha and adjacent Andhra Pradesh coasts between Gopalpur and Paradip by the night of October 2.
According to weather experts, a depression is a stage following a well-marked low pressure and preceding a cyclonic storm, typically resulting in significant rainfall and strong, gusty winds.
The national weather agency has issued a ‘Red’ warning (above 20 cm of rainfall) for Puri and Jagatsinghpur districts, an ‘Orange’ warning (7 cm to 20 cm of rain) for 14 districts, and a ‘Yellow’ warning (7 cm to 11 cm of rain) for the remaining 14 districts.
Given the IMD’s forecast, officials reported that the Odisha government instructed all district collectors to position men and machinery in areas prone to water-logging, flash floods, landslides, and related events.
Fishermen have been advised not to venture into the sea along and off the Odisha coast until October 3.
“Under the influence of the deep depression, squally wind speed reaching 40-50 kmph gusting to 60 kmph is very likely to prevail over central and adjoining north Bay of Bengal on October 1. It would gradually increase 55-65 kmph gusting to 75 kmph over westcentral and adjoining northwest Bay of Bengal from October 2 noon to October 3 early morning,” the IMD bulletin said.
The IMD has also recommended raising the ‘Local Cautionary Signal No-III’ (LC-3) at all ports in the state.
