A low-pressure system in the Bay of Bengal is set to become a deep depression tonight. If it intensifies into a cyclone, it will be named 'Arnab'. The Met department has issued a heavy rain alert for six districts in West Bengal.
The weather department has brought some relief for now. They confirmed there's no immediate cyclone risk, but the system will definitely become a deep depression tonight.
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Where is the low-pressure system now?
On Tuesday morning, the system was located 200 km southwest of Gopalpur in Odisha. It was also 290 km east of Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh, moving slowly at just 18 km in six hours.
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The storm's predicted path
The Met department forecasts the system will move west-northwest across the Bay of Bengal. It is expected to make landfall between Visakhapatnam and Gopalpur sometime between Wednesday night and Thursday morning.
If the deep depression strengthens into a cyclone, it will be named 'Arnab', which means 'sea'. Bangladesh had already chosen this name for the next cyclone in the North Indian Ocean. However, the weather office has not made any official cyclone forecast yet.
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Heavy rain alert for six districts on Tuesday
The low-pressure system will bring heavy rain to six South Bengal districts on Tuesday. The alert is for North 24 Parganas, South 24 Parganas, East Medinipur, West Medinipur, and Birbhum. Kolkata and other districts will also see thunderstorms.
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Bad weather to continue till Thursday in more districts
The weather office has forecast heavy rain for Wednesday in South 24 Parganas, both Medinipurs, Jhargram, and Purulia. The rain might get even heavier in the Medinipurs and western districts on Thursday.
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Gusty winds also forecasted
The weather office has also warned about gusty winds blowing at 40 to 50 kmph in some districts. They have advised people to stay indoors and away from open areas during thunderstorms to avoid lightning strikes.
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Heavy rain alert for North Bengal too
North Bengal will also feel the effects. The Met department has predicted moderate to heavy rain with thunderstorms from Tuesday to Thursday in Jalpaiguri, Darjeeling, Alipurduar, Kalimpong, Cooch Behar, North Dinajpur, and South Dinajpur. A very heavy rain alert is also in place for Jalpaiguri and Alipurduar on Friday.
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Fishermen banned from going to sea
The Bay of Bengal will be very rough. Authorities have completely banned fishermen from going into the deep sea along the West Bengal and Odisha coasts from Tuesday to Friday. Going to sea during this time could be extremely dangerous.
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Schools closed in four Odisha districts
Odisha is preparing for the worst impact. The state government has closed schools in Khurda, Ganjam, Jagatsinghpur, and Gajapati districts from Tuesday to Thursday. A warning for strong winds of 55 to 65 kmph has also been issued for the Odisha coast for Tuesday evening.
