Six months into 2020 and the world has witnessed some of the worstpossible events and things only seem to be going south. Amid the pandemic, the US has been torn apart by riots and protests after George Floyd's death; there has been another Ebola outbreak in Congo; migrants are goingthrough unspeakable misery in India; and freak weather phenomena has beenwreaking havoc in different parts of the world.
Just days after Super Cyclone Amphan wreaked havoc in WestBengal and Odisha, the Indian coast is bracing for another cyclonic storm, thistime in the Arabian Ocean.
And a map by earth.nullschoolshows just how dangerous the depression looks over the Arabian coast. IMD'sCyclone E-Atlas, which has been tracking cyclones and weather depressions overthe north Indian Ocean, said no weather system has turned into a cyclone andmade landfall near Mumbai along the Maharashtra coast during the month of June, since 1891.
Stronger than usual winds and showers are expected to lashthe coast of Maharashtra on the evening of June 2, and in the first half of June 3, Hindustan Times, citing Akshay Deoaras, an independent meteorologist andPhD researcher at the University of Reading, UK, reported.
The Indian Meteorological Department has issued a red alertfor Mumbai and six other districts of Maharashtra as Cyclone Nisarga is predictedto make landfall on June 3. According to the IMD, the deep depression which hasturned into tropical cyclonic storm Nisarga in the Arabian Sea, is movingnorthwards at a speed of four kilometres per hour.
It may further intensify into a "severe cyclonicstorm" in the next 24 hours, the India Meteorological Department or IMDsaid this morning. Mumbai and neighbouring districts have been placed on highalert.
"The depression over eastcentral Arabian Sea movednorthwards with a speed of 11 kmph during past 06 hours intensified into a deepdepression and lay centered at 0530 hours IST of today, the 02nd June, 2020over Eastcentral Arabian Sea near latitude 15.0 N and longitude 71.2 E about280 km west-southwest of Panjim (Goa), 490 km south-southwest of Mumbai(Maharashtra) and 710 km south-southwest of Surat (Gujarat)," the IMD saidthis morning.
"It is very likely to intensify into a Cyclonic Stormduring next 12 hours and further into a Severe Cyclonic Storm during subsequent12 hours. It is very likely to move nearly northwards during next 06 hours andrecurve north-northeastwards thereafter and cross north Maharashtra andadjoining south Gujarat coast between Harihareshwar (Raigad, Maharashtra) andDaman during the afternoon of 03rd June," the statement further read.
IMD's Director General, Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, has said thatthe severe cyclonic storm will have a wind speed of 90-105 kmph when it crossesthe coast on June 3. The IMD Director General also said that the cyclonic stormwill affect the coastal districts of Maharashtra, including Mumbai, more thanGujarat and neighbouring states.