Cyclone Yaas: What we know so far

The cyclone is likely to hit the coasts of West Bengal and Odisha on the morning of May 26

India is bracing for its second cyclone in May even as the severe Tauktae sprays the northwestern and central parts of the country with a final smattering of rain after weeks of lashing waves and violent storms along the Arabian Sea coast.

Here's what we know so far:

1. Cyclone Yaas—named by Oman after the Jasmine tree—is likely to brew over the opposite side of the peninsula, with a low-pressure area having already formed over east-central Bay of Bengal and will then concentrate into a depression, according to the Indian Meteorological Department’s (IMD) briefing on Saturday.

2. Yaas is then likely to move north-northwestwards and strengthen into a severe cyclonic storm by May 24 and a very severe cyclone in the next 24 hours.

3. The IMD expects it to make landfall on the morning of May 26 near West Bengal and neighbouring regions of north Odisha and the coastal regions of Bangladesh with wind speeds of 155-165 km per hour and heavy rainfall.

Read | Cyclone Yaas likely to intensify into very severe cyclonic storm on May 26; may hit WB, Odisha, Bangladesh: IMD

4. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will partake in a meeting of senior government officials, disaster management bodies and secretaries from telecom, power, civil aviation and earth sciences ministries on Sunday to examine the precautions in place for the impending cyclone.

5. The National Disaster Response Force has already deployed 65 teams in service of managing the weather event, with another 20 teams on standby.

6. The National Crisis Management Committee has also sprung into action, laying special emphasis on ensuring the upkeep of healthcare facilities and maintain social distancing practices keeping the Covid-19 situation in mind.

7. The West Bengal government has set up control rooms to monitor the situation, while officials have already been directed to evacuate people from low-lying areas.

8. The Odisha government has asked the Indian Navy and the Indian Coast Guard to stay alert as the cyclone nears.

Read | Explained: How IMD’s colour-coded warning system works

9. Cyclone Yaas is unlikely to rival last May’s super cyclone Amphan, which was also incidentally accompanied by cyclone Nisarga in the west, IMD meteorologists in Kolkata told the Hindustan Times.

10. However, experts also warned that Yaas’ pairing with the high spring tide could be a cause of concerns for the Sunderbans in particular.

Wind speed is very likely to reach 90 to 100 km per hour gusting to 110 kmph from May 26 forenoon along and off West Bengal, north Odisha and Bangladesh coasts and increase thereafter till May 26 evening, the MeT office said.

(With agency inputs)