‘Asani’ weakened but thunderstorm and rain expected in North West Bengal

HnExpress Mayank Chakravarty, Weather Report : Cyclone Asani lost strength rapidly between midnight before even coming near the Odisha coast, IMD officials said. Kolkata got scattered showers on Wednesday. The moisture generated by Asani can trigger a couple of thunderstorm spells on Thursday and Friday, said the official. North Bengal is likely to get heavy rain between May 12 and 15 because of strong southwesterly winds, according to the IMD forecast. Where is Asani now?

Last time It was was around 30km from the Machilipatnam coast in Andhra Pradesh. It is very likely to move north- north and eastwards along Narsapur, Yanam, Kakinada, Visakhapatnam Tuni and coasts. What happened there? A strong vertical wind shear also damaged the system. Lastly, the friction in the coastal areas, in the form of houses, trees and electrical and telephone towers, also weakened the system.

Andhra Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy held a review meeting via video conference with Collectors, SPs, and other senior officials on the action to be taken in the districts affected by the Asani cyclone. State officials visited cyclone-hit areas along with National Disaster Relief teams. The CM also announced financial assistance in rehabilitation camps for home.

Forecasting related to West Bengal : The IMD has predicted light to moderate rainfall in Coastal areas of Odisha and West Bengal, too, are likely to receive rainfall. In the next 12 hours, Rain in Kolkata, if any, is likely to come in the form of thunderstorms on Thursday and Friday, The rain since Monday has been triggered by the outer clouds of the cyclone. “There is a lot of moisture in the atmosphere in and around Kolkata, accumulated over the past 72 hours. If there is sufficient heating, the moisture can combine with the heat to form thunderclouds,” said IMD officials.