Chennai braces for extreme heatwave 

CHENNAI: Chennaiites have so far escaped the simmering heat as temperature has been hovering around normal levels, but the condition is set to change depending on the path of the cyclonic storm brewing in the Bay of Bengal. Going by the weather models, the city will record 40 degree Celsius and above in the next few days.  

The Indian Meteorological Department on Saturday said the Well Marked Low Pressure Area over southeast Bay of Bengal and adjoining Andaman Sea has concentrated into a depression. It is likely to intensify into a cyclonic storm over east-central Bay of Bengal by Sunday and move towards north Andhra Pradesh and Odisha coasts by Monday evening. 

P Senthamarai Kannan, director of Area Cyclone Warning Centre at Regional Meteorological Centre, told TNIE, “The storm will not benefit TN, instead the temperature will shoot up 2-3 degrees above normal. The weather system will induce north-westerly winds blocking the sea breeze. Since it’s a fast moving storm, a spike in temperature will recorded for three days maximum.” 

Weather blogger K Srikanth said north Tamil Nadu, including Chennai, will bear the brunt. “Chennai will definitely breach 40 degrees Celsius mark either on Monday or Tuesday. In fact, some models are predicting temperature of 42 degrees for the city. Overall, May and first half of June would be hotter than April with dry westerlies in dominance.”