Cyclone Tauktae ALERT: These states are going to be affected; check date, time

The IMD has issued a warning for fishermen and other vessels plying in the region to avoid passage through the region. (Credit: The Indian Express)

Even as the country battles the ferocious second wave of Coronavirus in the country, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has said that severe cyclonic conditions are going to be formed over the Lakshadweep islands and the Arabian Sea in the next 36 hours. The weather body also said that the disturbance will also result in a heavy cyclone hitting the Gujarat coast on May 18. The cyclone named Tauktae is going to emerge as another challenge for states which have a coast on the Arabian sea amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.

States going to be affected by cyclone Tauktae

As the low-pressure area develops slowly in the Arabian sea, states which are first going to face the atrocities of cyclone include three districts of Kerala and Lakshadweep which will receive extreme rainfall on Friday. The low-pressure area will persist in the extreme South even on Saturday and five districts of Kerala have been put on high alert as they are going to receive heavy lashes of rain. The districts which have been put on alert include Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Ernakulam, Kottayam, Alappuzha and Idukki in the state of Kerala.

Beginning from light showers on Friday and Saturday, the intensity of rain will increase in the Konkan region of Goa and Maharashtra as well by Sunday, as per the IMD. The Kolhapur and Satara districts which fall in Western Maharashtra will receive heavy rainfall on Sunday and Monday as the cyclone moves in the North. As the low-pressure region progresses in the coming days, the districts of Saurashtra and Kutch on the Gujarat coast will start receiving heavy rainfall by May 17 and continue to remain affected by the cyclone till May 19.

IMD warning to fishermen, vessels

The IMD has also said that the sea conditions are going to remain extremely harsh in the Arabian Sea and particularly in the vicinity of Lakshadweep islands till May 16. The IMD has issued a warning for fishermen and other vessels plying in the region to avoid passage through the region.

Preparations to tackle cyclone Tauktae

The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has zeroed in select areas of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Goa, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Gujarat and incorporated a total of 53 teams to battle cyclone Tauktae. As per the statement issued by NDRF Director General SN Pradhan, a total of 23 teams have already been deployed by the NDRF in Kerala and other southern states whereas the rest of the teams have been kept on standby to deal with the aftermath of cyclone in other states of the country in the following days.