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Very severe cyclone Ockhi has weakened to a cyclone and would soon start travelling towards north-north-east to cross the South Gujarat-North Maharashtra coast tomorrow as a depression.
India Met Department (IMD) located the system this morning to 610 km north-north-west of Amini Divi (Lakshadweep), 670 km south-south-west of Mumbai and 850 km south-south-west of Surat.
Landfall near Surat
The landfall point is likely to be just beyond Mumbai and near Surat in South Gujarat, IMD assessed. It could attain a depression status or below since the weakening trend has become more pronounced now.
Squally winds with speeds of up to 60 km and gusting to 70 km have been warned for the North Maharashtra and South Gujarat coasts for today and tomorrow.
Fishermen have been advised not to venture out into the sea off these coasts on these days. A heavy rain alert has been issued for the Gujarat coast tomorrow.
Meanwhile, a heavy to very heavy rain alert has been also sounded for the Tamil Nadu and Puducherry coasts from day after tomorrow (Wednesday) from a brewing storm in the Bay of Bengal.
The preparatory well-marked low-pressure area is now located this morning over South-East Bay of Bengal and adjoining South Andaman Sea and adjoining Equatorial Indian Ocean.
Heavy rain for TN coast
It is forecast to become a depression over South-East Bay and neighbourhood by tonight/tomorrow morning and become a deep depression by Thursday/Friday.
IMD saw it travelling towards the North Tamil Nadu-South Andhra Pradesh coast by weekend, though it doesn't say whether it would reach a tropical cyclone status.
In all probability it may not, given the overwhelming presence of the western disturbance over North-West India that prevailed over the once powerful very severe cyclone Okhi and smothered it.
The disturbance would still not have exited North India fully by the time the deep depression in the Bay approaches the Chennai and adjoining South Andhra Pradesh coast.
All available forecasts suggest that this disturbance would stop the deep depression on its tracks and weaken it, before allowing entry to the South Andhra Pradesh coast by the weekend.
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