Chennai, 26 October (H.S.) : The deep depression over the southeast Bay of Bengal has marginally slowed its forward motion but continues its track closer to the coast, positioning itself for significant intensification in the coming days.

According to the latest readings, the weather system was lying centred about 770 km east-southeast of Chennai as of 11:30 am on Sunday morning. The system advanced approximately 10 km over the preceding three hours, with the speed of progress reducing slightly from six kilometers per hour to five kilometers per hour.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) reported that the deep depression is currently also situated about 620 km west of Port Blair, 820 km south-southeast of Visakhapatnam, and 810 km southeast of Kakinada.

Authorities have issued a serious warning regarding the projected path and intensity. The system is likely to move nearly west-northwestwards and is expected to intensify further into a cyclonic storm over the southwest and adjoining west-central Bay of Bengal during the next 12 hours.

Providing a detailed version of the forecast, the weather department stated that after this initial change, the system is projected to move northwestwards and then north-northwestwards, rapidly strengthening into a severe cyclonic storm by Tuesday morning, October 28.

The IMD update also specifies the expected landfall scenario: the severe cyclonic storm is very likely to cross the Andhra Pradesh coast between Machilipatnam and Kalingapatnam, specifically around Kakinada, during the evening or night of October 28.

At the time of crossing, the storm is predicted to possess a maximum sustained wind speed of 90-100 kmph, with gusts reaching up to 110 kmph, necessitating immediate preparedness across the vulnerable coastal districts.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Dr. R. B. Chaudhary