Bhubaneswar, October 18: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has strongly confirmed the probability of the formation of a cyclone over the Bay of Bengal this weekend after October 22. The storm will be named ‘Cyclone Sitrang’ in case the system intensifies into a cyclonic storm.

Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal will likely witness very heavy rains and strong winds between October 23 and 27. Sitrang will be the second cyclonic storm this year after cyclone Asani that had formed in the Bay of Bengal in early May. Cyclone Sitrang: Tropical Cyclone Likely to Form Over Bay of Bengal, Leaves of Government Employees Cancelled in Odisha From October 23 to 25

Cyclone Sitrang Live Tracker Map on Windy:

Earlier, at least three models, including the European ECMWF, the American GFS and the Australian Access weather model, reported the likelihood of a cyclone hitting the Andhra-Odisha coast (October 24-25). However, IMD quickly clarified the rumours and noted that it is too early to tell whether the system will likely intensify to severe conditions.  Odisha Cyclone Rumours: IMD Advises People To Not Pay Heed to Rumours of Possible Cyclonic Storm in the Coastal State

IMD, on Tuesday, confirmed the fresh low-pressure area (LPA) to form over the eastern Bay of Bengal in the next 48 hours and travel towards the Indian coast. According to the weather models, the storm is mostly likely to move westwards and reach closer to India’s east coast and affect regions along north Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and southern Odisha.

While both Global Forecast System (GFS) and the European ECMWF model agree that the storm will track more northwards and will remain weak with a peak intensity of 60-70 kmph but ECMWF recently projected that system will develop into a deep depression and make landfall near the Odisha-West Bengal border by Tuesday next week.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 18, 2022 08:57 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).