Cyclone Remal likely to make landfall today: Flight ops to be hit, NDRF on standby | Top updates

A low-pressure system over the Bay of Bengal has intensified into cyclonic storm 'Remal' and is likely to make landfall in West Bengal on Sunday. This is the first cyclone in the Bay of Bengal this pre-monsoon season.

Disaster management organisations are preparing for the powerful cyclonic storm Remal, which is rapidly approaching the coasts of Bangladesh and West Bengal. Landfall is predicted for Sunday night at midnight, with winds of 110–120 km/h with gusts up to 135 kmph. The Met Office has issued a warning for very high rainfall on May 26–27 in the coastal regions of north Odisha and West Bengal.

It will intensify into a "severe cyclonic storm" in the next six hours and cross between Bangladesh and adjoining Bengal coasts around midnight, the Met office said.

Orange alert issued, control room established

The coast of West Bengal has been issued a "orange" warning by the IMD due to the possibility of storm surges up to one metre above astronomical tide, which might submerge low-lying coastal regions close to the Sagar Islands at the time of landfall.

The state agencies now have a control room at the Kolkata Police headquarters in Lalbazar. Additionally, teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are making their way towards the areas where the cyclonic storm is most expected to make landfall.

NDRF teams on stand by

Additionally, 12 teams with equipment have been sent to seven districts by the NDRF. There will be two teams each in the districts of North 24-Parganas, East Midnapore, and West Midnapore, in addition to one team stationed in Kolkata. The area that is predicted to be affected the most, South 24-Parganas, has three teams sent there. Howrah and Hooghly will be the locations of the remaining teams. It is anticipated that between 6 p.m. on Sunday and 6 a.m. on Monday, things will be at their worst.

Flights to be affected

Meanwhile, due to the potential effects of Cyclone Remal, the officials at the Kolkata airport have chosen to halt flight operations for 21 hours starting at midday on Sunday. According to a spokesman for the Airports Authority of India (AAI), 394 flights—both arrival and departure—in the domestic and international sectors will not run to and from the airport during the flight suspension period.

The Kolkata airport authorities will suspend flight operations from Sunday noon to Monday morning (9 am) in view of the possible impact of Cyclone.