SunstarTV Bureau: The Meteorological department on Friday has issued red alert for Kerala and for Karnataka and Tamil Nadu on Saturday.
Similarly, an ‘Orange’ alert has also been issued in four others districts of Kerala after the India Meteorological Department (IMD) warned of cyclonic storm – Tauktae, which is likely to hit the coast on May 16. The State Disaster Management Authority on Thursday stopped fishing activities off the coast of Kerala.
According to the IMD, a low-pressure area over southeast Arabian Sea and Lakshadweep area is likely to intensify into a cyclonic storm.
Meanwhile, Kerala Chief Minister’s Office in a tweet said, ”Extremely heavy rainfall” has been predicted on May 14, 15 and 16.
A ‘Red’ alert has been issued for Friday in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam and Pathanamthitta districts, and Lakshadweep.
An ‘Orange’ alert, indicating intermittent heavy rainfall, has been issued in Ernakulam, Kottayam, Alappuzha and Idukki.
Cyclone Tauktae is likely to impact areas including the coasts of Kerala, Karnataka, Lakshadweep, Goa and Maharashtra.
According to the IMD, strong winds, 40-50 km per hour is likely to hit the coastal regions.
Furthermore, the wind speed may intensify to 70 km per hour on May 15 and reach 80 km per hour by May 16.
The NDRF teams are on standby in the coastal regions of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Gujarat and Maharashtra.
Total 53 NDRF teams are on standby. As many as 24 teams for pre-deploymed and 29 teams are ready for the five states.
However, the IMD has issued a warning for fishermen till May 17
