PremiumCyclone Sitrang latest update: Umashankar Das, IMD scientist said that the department was expecting the cyclonic storm to become a well-marked low-pressure area.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) informed that the cyclonic storm ‘Sitrang’ which created a deep depression over Bangladesh further weakened into a depression as it crossed the Bangladesh coast.
Umashankar Das, IMD scientist said that the department was expecting the cyclonic storm to become a well-marked low-pressure area, as per ANI reports.
"Deep Depression over Bangladesh (Remnant of Cyclonic Storm "SITRANG") further weakened into a Depression and lay centered at 0530 hrs IST of over northeast Bangladesh and neighbourhood about 90 km north-northeast of Agartala, and 100 km south-southwest of Shillong," the IMD tweeted on Tuesday.
The weather forecasting agency has issued red alert indicating heavy to very heavy and extremely heavy rainfall under the influence of Cyclone Sitrang was issued for Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, and Tripura on Tuesday. It has caused some damages to the northeast states in India including Assam, and Mizoram.
The situation in Assam continues to remain grim on Tuesday as nearly 1100 people of 83 villages have been affected by the deluge caused by the cyclonic storm 'Sitrang'. Several houses were damaged due to Cyclone Sitrang which caused heavy rainfall and a storm in Assam.
According to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority, 1146 people have been affected by the storm. Sitrang has damaged 325.501 Hect of crops, as per the officials quoted by ANI.
Many trees and electric poles were also uprooted in various parts of the Nagaon district of the state due to the cyclonic storm on Monday night.
As per ANI reports, several houses in the Kaliabor, Bamuni, Sakmuthia tea estate, and Boraligaon areas of the central Assam district have been damaged due to the storm. No casualties due to the storm have been reported so far in the area.
"Several houses were damaged and many trees uprooted in the storm in our Kaliabor area. As a government village headman, I have visited the entire village and I will submit the damage report to our Circle Officer," said the village headman.
At least five houses and two relief camps in Mizoram's Mamit and Siaha districts were damaged due to heavy rain accompanied by squally wind under the impact of cyclone 'Sitrang', an official said on Tuesday.
The downpour also triggered landslides and uprooted trees along several highways in various parts of the northeastern state, he said, adding that no casualty has been reported so far, as per PTI reports.
Two houses, one of which was newly constructed, in Mamit district bordering Tripura were ravaged late Monday.
In Siaha, three residences and two relief camps where Myanmar refugees have been staying were also damaged by heavy rain on October 25, the official said, adding that detailed reports from other districts are awaited.
Heavy rain along with gusty wind also disrupted power supplies in some parts of the northeastern state.
Meanwhile, all schools in Aizawl, southern Mizoram's Lunglei and Serchhip districts remained shut on Tuesday in view of heavy rainfall.
West Bengal was left unharmed, as Sitrang cyclone slid through the state's coast and crossed the Bangladesh coast. The IMD said that south West Bengal's weather will gradually improve from forenoon.
The West Bengal government had advised people to take precautionary measures in view of the weather forecasts about the cyclonic storm.
As per ANI reports, the tides have hit the coast of Bakkhali beach in South 24 Parganas in West Bengal amid the cyclone 'Sitrang' alert on Tuesday.
Intermittent showers on Monday forced people to remain indoors as most Kolkata streets wore a deserted look on a festive evening which would normally have attracted tens of thousands to visit Kali Puja pandals and see the bright lights of the city.
A cyclone roared into the Bangladesh coast on Tuesday, killing at least 35 people, destroying houses, uprooting trees and disrupting road, power and communication links, officials said as quoted by PTI.
They said that mass evacuations before Cyclone Sitrang made landfall on the west coast helped save lives, but the full extent of the casualties and damage would only be known after communications were fully restored.
“Power and telephone links have largely been cut and coastal areas plunged into darkness. Around 2,000 electric poles were damaged, leaving 8 million people without electricity. Efforts are underway to restore electricity as soon as possible," Nasrul Hamid, junior minister for power, energy and mineral resources told reporters.
The officials added that some 10,000 homes, 6,000 hectares (14,826 acres) of cropland and 1,000 fishing enclosures were damaged by the cyclone. They advised nearly 32,000 Rohingya refugees who had moved from the camps to a flood-prone island in the Bay of Bengal to stay indoors.
(With inputs from agencies)