Cyclone Asani to weaken over the next 24 hours

Severe cyclonic storm Asani has started weakening and will become a cyclonic storm in the next 24 hours. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said coastal and south Odisha will receive light to moderate rain.

The weather office director H.R. Biswas said the storm over west-central and adjoining southwest Bay of Bengal moved west-north-westwards with a speed of 10 kmph during the past six hours. It lay centered over the west-central Bay of Bengal near about 260 km southeast of Kakinada (Andhra Pradesh), 300 km south of Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh), 490 km south-southwest of Gopalpur (Odisha), and 570 km south-southwest of Puri (Odisha).

Asani is expected to move north-westwards till tonight and reach the west-central Bay of Bengal off the north Andhra Pradesh coast. The IMD report said the storm will move parallel to the coast in the north-northeast direction. Gale wind speed reaching 100-110 kmph gusting to 120 kmph is prevailing around the cyclone. It will gradually decrease from Tuesday midnight to May 12 morning.

Some districts in Odisha - Malkangiri, Koraput, Gajapati, Ganjam, and Puri - will receive heavy downpour on Tuesday. Gajapati, Ganjam, Puri, Koraput, Rayagada, Khurda, Jagatsinghpur, and Cuttack districts will receive very heavy rainfall on Wednesday. Some places may see rain till May 12.

Fishermen are advised to stay away from the sea till May 13. Local cautionary signal No.3 (LC-3) has been hoisted at Gopalpur port and distant warning signal No.2 (DW-2) has been issued for all other ports of Odisha.