Cyclone Tauktae: Heavy rains likely in Mumbai today

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(Image: Twitter/indiannavy)
(Image: Twitter/indiannavy)

Mumbai : The first cyclonic storm of 2021 - Tauktae - has intensified and may hit the Gujarat coast by Tuesday, the weather office said. 

It is likely that Mumbai will receive a heavy rainfall due to the cyclone and it may trigger flash floods and landslides over the coastal districts of Kerala, Karnataka and Goa till Sunday. The weather office said that light showers in Mumbai are expected from Sunday afternoon.

"Cyclone Tauktae is very likely to intensify further into a Very Severe Cyclonic Storm during next 12 hours and intensify further. It is very likely to move north-northwestwards and reach Gujarat coast in the morning of 18th and cross Gujarat coast between Porbandar and Naliya around 18th May Afternoon / evening," the IMD said in its latest update.

More than 50 teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been placed to ensure safety of people in five states - Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Maharashtra. 

The Western Railway has suspended all 56 trains either originating or terminating in Gujarat''s Saurashtra region as a precaution.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi reviewed the preparedness of states, central ministries and agencies tasked with dealing with the situation arising out of cyclone Tauktae and asked them to take every possible measure to ensure that people are safely evacuated.

Heavy rain was reported in Maharashtra's coastal Ratnagiri district on Saturday, said K S Hosalikar, head SID, Climate Research and Services, IMD, Pune.

The IMD has issued an "orange alert"' which means heavy to very heavy rainfall is likely over entire Konkan and hilly areas of western Maharashtra, mainly Kolhapur and Satara on Sunday and Monday, she said.



In a tweet, NDRF chief Satya Pradhan gave details of the teams that are on duty in various states.



Deep depression that formed over Arabian Sea near Lakshwadeep intensified last night into a into a Cyclonic Storm "Tauktae" (pronounced as Tau'Te), per an official statement from the weather office.

While Kerala is not in the predicted path of the cyclone, the state government said it is prepared as heavy rains, strong winds and strong sea gusts are expected till Sunday.



More than 300 people have been relocated from disaster-prone areas to relief camps in the state capital Thiruvananthapuram, one of the areas where a red alert has been issued.

"About 318 buildings have been set up in different parts of the district to open relief camps in case more people need to be relocated," Thiruvananthapuram district collector Navjot Khosa was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

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