New Delhi:
Cyclone Dana will make landfall near Odisha’s Bhitarkanika and Dhamra tonight, with a likely wind speed of 100-120 km per hour. Both Odisha and West Bengal are on high alert, with vulnerable population evacuated, flight and rail services suspended.

Here are the top 10 points in this big story:

New Delhi:

Schools have been shut and over 150 trains cancelled as Odisha and West Bengal brace for Cyclone “Dana”, which is likely to cross the coasts between Puri and Sagar Island in the early hours of October 25 with wind speeds of up to 120 kmph. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) this morning said that a deep depression over the east-central Bay of Bengal has intensified into a cyclonic storm ‘Dana’.

At 5.30 am today, the system lay 560 km southeast of Paradip (Odisha) and 630 km south-southeast of Sagar Island (West Bengal), it said.

It is very likely to move in a northwestward direction and intensify further into a severe cyclonic storm over the northwest Bay of Bengal by Thursday morning, the premier weather agency said.

Subject: Cyclonic storm over eastcentral Bay of Bengal (Cyclone Alert for Odisha and West Bengal coasts)

Yesterday’s deep depression over Eastcentral Bay of Bengal moved west-northwestwards with a speed of 18 kmph during past 6 hours intensified into a cyclonic storm “DANA”… pic.twitter.com/erbYsIBmaw

— India Meteorological Department (@Indiametdept) October 23, 2024

The Met department advised fishermen not to venture into the sea till October 25.

Cyclone Dana Shuts Schools In Odisha

In Odisha, all educational institutions including schools, colleges and universities have been shut in 14 districts till October 25 ahead of Cyclone Dana’s landfall.

Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi-led Odisha government has cancelled leave for its employees and placed all coastal districts on high alert.

The Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force and fire service personnel have also been put on standby, with particular attention to the districts of Kendrapara, Jagatsinghpur, Puri, Balasore, Bhadrak, Ganjam and Khorda.

Bengal Braces For Cyclone Dana

In West Bengal, schools in seven districts will remain closed till October 26 in view of Cyclone Dana. The districts likely to be impacted most include South 24 Parganas, North 24 Parganas, and Purba Medinipur, along with coastal areas and neighbouring districts like Paschim Medinipur, Bankura, Jhargram, and Hooghly.

“We do not want to take any risk. Schools and colleges are sometimes used as shelters for people,” Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said, adding her government is ready to face the cyclone.

More than 150 express/passenger trains running through South Eastern Railway (SER) jurisdiction have been cancelled.

The Kolkata-headquartered SER zone is spread over West Bengal, Odisha and Jharkhand.

The trains cancelled include Howrah-Secunderabad Falaknuma Express, Kamakhya-Yesvantpur AC Express, Howrah-Puri Shatabdi Express, Howrah-Bhubaneswar Shatabdi Express and Howrah-Yesvantpur Express.

An official said the trains cancelled were scheduled to depart their originating stations between October 23 and 25.

More trains running through the SER zone may be cancelled if the situation demands, the official said.

Cyclone Dana Was Named By Qatar

As per the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), Cyclone Dana’s name was suggested by Qatar. It means “generosity” in Arabic.

The WMO says that assigning names to tropical cyclones makes tracking and discussing specific storms more “straightforward, especially when multiple storms are active simultaneously.”

“Naming also helps to avoid confusion among meteorologists, media, emergency management agencies and the public. Additionally, naming tropical cyclones can aid historical record-keeping and research on storm behaviour and impacts,” the WMO says.

Kolkata:

The West Bengal government announced on Tuesday that schools and academic institutions will remain closed in various parts of the state following a notice from the India Meteorological Department (IMD) regarding Cyclone Dana, which is expected to make landfall on the coast of West Bengal by October 24.

According to a notice issued by the School Education Department of the West Bengal Government, academic activities in seven districts–including South 24 Parganas, North 24 Parganas, Purba Medinipur, Paschim Medinipur, Jhargram, Bankura, Hooghly, Howrah, and Kolkata–will be suspended from October 23 to October 26.

In preparation for Cyclone Dana, West Bengal Fire and Emergency Services Minister Sujit Bose stated that teams have been deployed at 85 stations across the state. He specified that 11 teams will be stationed in South Kolkata, eight in North Kolkata, 12 in South 24 Parganas, 24 in North 24 Parganas, six in Howrah, four in West Medinipur, and five in East Medinipur.

“A meeting was held regarding the cyclone, and officials were present. We will deploy teams in 85 stations. Along with this, there will be a monitoring system in the control room,” he said.

Additionally, the IMD reported that the depression over the east-central Bay of Bengal has moved west-northwestward in the last six hours, intensifying into a deep depression.

The IMD stated that the depression is likely to continue moving west-northwestward and intensify into a cyclonic storm by October 23 over the east-central Bay of Bengal.

It further noted that the storm is expected to move northwestward and may intensify into a severe cyclonic storm over the northwest Bay of Bengal by the morning of October 24, forming along the coast between Puri and Sagar Island during the night of October 24.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Odisha and West Bengal are bracing for the impact of Cyclone Dana, which is expected to make landfall between Puri and Sagar Island on the intervening night of October 24 and October 25. ‘Dana’ is likely to cross north Odisha and West Bengal coasts as a severe cyclonic storm with a wind speed of 100-110 kmph gusting 120 kmph.

Cyclone Dana has also forced the Odisha government to shut schools and ask fishermen to avoid venturing into the sea on October 24. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Odisha will witness heavy rainfall between October 23 and October 25.

Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi chaired a high-level meeting to take stock of the preparedness.

“We are absolutely ready to face the cyclone. All the disaster response teams have been put on readiness. Our focus is to ensure zero casualty,” Mr Majhi said.

“Emphasis has been given on 100% evacuation after identification of vulnerable zones which are likely to be impacted by the cyclone. All essential commodities will be kept ready in the cyclone shelters,” he added.

The Odisha government has cancelled leave for its employees and placed all coastal districts on high alert.

The Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force and fire service personnel have been put on standby, with particular attention to the districts of Kendrapara, Jagatsinghpur, Puri, Balasore, Bhadrak, Ganjam and Khorda.

For West Bengal, the Met Office has predicted heavy rain in the coastal districts of Purba and Paschim Medinipur and North and South 24 Parganas on October 23.

How Cyclone Dana Was Named

As per the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), Dana’s name was suggested by Qatar.

It means “generosity” in Arabic.

The WMO says that assigning names to tropical cyclones makes tracking and discussing specific storms more “straightforward, especially when multiple storms are active simultaneously.”

“Naming also helps to avoid confusion among meteorologists, media, emergency management agencies and the public. Additionally, naming tropical cyclones can aid historical record-keeping and research on storm behaviour and impacts,” the WMO says.

How Cyclones Are Named

The process of determining names for tropical cyclones is conducted by the relevant tropical cyclone regional body at its annual or biennial meetings.

There are five tropical cyclone regional bodies – ESCAP/WMO Typhoon Committee, WMO/ESCAP Panel on Tropical Cyclones, RA I Tropical Cyclone Committee, RA IV Hurricane Committee, and RA V Tropical Cyclone Committee.

These bodies establish pre-designated lists of names which are proposed by WMO Members’ National Meteorological and Hydrological Services.

The selection of names is also based on their familiarity with the people in each region.

When a new name is selected, some of the following factors are considered: Short in character length for ease of use in communication; easy to pronounce; appropriate significance in different languages; and uniqueness – same names cannot be used in other regions.

Bhubaneswar:

A cyclonic storm is likely to form in the Bay of Bengal off the Odisha coast on October 23, said the India Meteorological Department (IMD) here on Sunday.

The IMD sources also revealed that a low-pressure area is very likely to be formed in the Bay of Bengal in the next 24 hours.

“Yesterday’s upper air cyclonic circulation over central Andaman Sea lay over the north Andaman Sea in the early morning (0530 hours IST) and persisted over the same region in the forenoon (0830 hrs IST) of today, October 20, 2024. Under its influence, a low-pressure area is very likely to form over the East-central Bay of Bengal and adjoining the north Andaman Sea during the next 24 hours,” said IMD on its official X account.

“It is very likely to move west-northwestwards and intensify into a depression by October 22 morning and into a cyclonic storm by October 23, 2024, over the East-central Bay of Bengal. Thereafter, it is very likely to move northwestwards and reach the northwest Bay of Bengal off Odisha-West Bengal coasts by October 24 morning,” IMD also added.

Speaking to media persons, the Director General (DG) of IMD, Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, on Sunday said that the sea conditions will remain rough under the influence of the system.

He also said that the wind speed will reach up to 45 km per hour by October 21 morning.

The wind speed is likely to further increase to 40-50 km per hour gusting up to 60 km per hour by October 21 evening.

The IMD DG noted that the wind speed will reach up to 65-75 km per hour in the central Bay of Bengal on October 23 morning.

“When the cyclonic system will reach the northwest Bay of Bengal off the Odisha-West Bengal coasts on October 24, the wind speed is likely to reach 100 to 120 kmph,” Mohapatra said.

He advised the fishermen not to venture into the sea along and off the Odisha coast until October 25 in view of the extreme weather situation due to the cyclonic storm.

The coastal states like Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, and West Bengal are likely to experience heavy rains due to the cyclone.

“The coastal areas of Odisha are likely to start witnessing rainfall from October 23 onwards. Odisha to experience maximum rainfall on October 24 and 25. Heavy to very heavy rainfall to occur at some places in Odisha while few places in the state to witness extremely heavy rainfall during the above period,” Mohapatra added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

The India Meteorological Department on Monday informed that Cyclone Remal over Coastal Bangladesh and adjoining Coastal West Bengal moved nearly northwards, with a speed of 15 kilometres per hour.

“The Cyclonic Storm ‘Remal’ over Coastal Bangladesh and adjoining Coastal West Bengal moved nearly northwards, with a speed of 15 kmph during the past 6 hours and lay centred at 08:30 hrs IST of today over the same region,” IMD posted on X.

According to the IMD, the severe cyclonic storm Remal has weakened into a cyclonic storm in the early hours of Monday and is expected to gradually weaken further.

“Severe Cyclonic Storm Remal over Coastal Bangladesh and adjoining Coastal West Bengal weakened into Cyclonic Storm at 0530hrs of the 27 May about 70km northeast of Canning and 30km west-southwest of Mongla. The system is likely to gradually weaken further,” IMD posted on X earlier.

Following the weakening of cyclone Remal, the flight operations resumed at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata.

“Flight operations resumed at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata at 0859 hrs, after it was closed for flight operation yesterday in view of the #CycloneRemal,” the official X handle of Kolkata Airport posted.

A passenger Debali Datta said, “I had my flight yesterday which got delayed. The airport authority informed me that it will depart today. This is because of the cyclone. Since we got to know beforehand, it did not create a lot of trouble for us.”

West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose with the Raj Bhavan task force also went on a field visit after cyclone Remal made landfall yesterday night.

“Raj Bhavan task force has just returned from the field visit. We are all greatly relieved that no reported casualty is there. Remal cyclone is weakening and the people of Bengal have been able to brave it with fortitude and courage. We are watching in case there is any need for any help. Raj Bhavan task force is ready. I thank the entire people of West Bengal for the solidarity which they have expressed,” Bose said.

Following the landfall of cyclonic storm ‘Remal’, waterlogging has been witnessed in parts of Kolkata with heavy rain.

Several trees were also uprooted in Kolkata’s Alipore area as heavy rain and gusty winds lashed several parts of West Bengal.

The IMD earlier informed that the storm ‘Remal’ would continue to move nearly northwards for some more time and then north-northeastwards and weaken gradually into a Cyclonic Storm.

The cyclone moved northwards and crossed the Bangladesh and adjoining West Bengal Coasts between Sagar Islands and Khepupara close to southwest of Mongla, said IMD.

“The Severe Cyclonic Storm ‘Remal’ over the North Bay of Bengal moved nearly northwards, with a speed of 13 kmph during past 06 hours, crossed Bangladesh and adjoining West Bengal Coasts between Sagar Islands and Khepupara close to southwest of Mongla near Latitude 21.75N and Longitude 89.2E between 22:30 hrs IST of 26th May to 00:30 hrs IST of 27th May 2024 as a Severe Cyclonic Storm with wind speed of 110 to 120 Kmph gusting to 135 Kmph,” said IMD in a post on X.

“It lay centred at 01:30 hrs IST of today, the 27th May, 2024 over Coastal Bangladesh and adjoining Coastal West Bengal, near latitude 21.9N and longitude 89,2E about 115 km east of Sagar Islands (West Bengal), 105 km west-southwest of Khepupara (Bangladesh), 70 km southeast of Canning (West Bengal) and SO km south-southwest of Mongla (Bangladesh), The system would continue to move nearly northwards for some more time and then north-northeastwards and weaken gradually into a Cyclonic Storm by morning of 27,” added the post.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Kolkata:

Flights services from the Kolkata airport resumed on Tuesday after remaining suspended for 21 hours in view of cyclone Remal, an official said on Monday.

The first plane to depart on Monday was IndiGo’s Kolkata-Port Blair flight at 8.59 am, while the first one to land in Kolkata was SpiceJet’s flight from Guwahati. It landed at 09.50 am, an Airports Authority of India (AAI) top official said.

Flight operations resumed at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata at 0859 hrs, after it was closed for flight operation yesterday in view of the #CycloneRemal. pic.twitter.com/crpOWTLO09

— Kolkata Airport (@aaikolairport) May 27, 2024

Check-in was on for some other flights, the official said.

The last flight to depart from Kolkata airport on Sunday was at 12.16 pm.

Though the process of resuming flight operations has begun, it will take some more time for the situation to become normal, sources at the airport said.

The cyclone which made landfall around midnight on Sunday brought heavy rain in the southern part of West Bengal, including Kolkata.

The authorities of Kolkata airport have decided to suspend flight operations for 21 hours from Sunday noon in view of the possible impact of cyclone Remal.

The precautionary measure was taken after a meeting of the stakeholders of the NSCBI Airport here on Saturday, the official said. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:
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.

Here Are 10 Points On Cyclone Remal