Cyclone Sitrang rips through NE states, Assam & Tripura badly hit

GUWAHATI: Cyclone Sitrang ripped through the northeast, bringing down houses, snapping telecommunication networks and damaging standing crops late on Monday, even as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) predicted more rain across the region.
While several areas of Guwahati remained water-logged, authorities warned people to stay indoors as the IMD said Arunachal Pradesh and north Assam could witness moderate to very heavy rainfall for the next 24 hours.
The cyclone had weakened into a low-pressure area over Northeast Bangladesh and Meghalaya, but traders got worried as road links to the entire northeast got affected in many places.
Authorities said Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and Northeast Assam will witness heavy to very heavy rainfall in the next 24 hours.
Power and telecommunication services were hit in Tripura and affected Diwali celebrations, bringing traffic movement to a crawl. Loadshedding and disconnection of telecommunication lines were reported from Sepahijala and South Tripura districts till Tuesday morning.
All schools across Mizoram shut down on Tuesday following heavy rains
“Cyclone Sitrang deviated from its predicted route and did not hit the state as expected earlier. However, the Met department predicted very heavy rainfall in the state that will continue till Wednesday,” one official of the Mizoram state meteorological centre in Aizawl said.
Flights were cancelled to many cities across the region. Due to poor visibility and dense cloud cover over Lengpui airport near Aizawl, many airlines cancelled their scheduled trips.
In Dimapur, the main town in Nagaland, district disaster management authorities were kept on standby.