Featured image: Screengrab from a video showing the storm’s movements.
Chennai: The deep depression over southwest Bay of Bengal has intensified into cyclonic storm ‘Burevi’ on Tuesday and it is very likely to intensify further and cross the Sri Lankan coast on December 2, the India Meteorological Department said.
After making landfall in the neighbouring country, close to Trincomalee, it is very likely to emerge into Gulf of Mannar and adjoining Comorin area, around Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu, on December 3 morning, the IMD said in a bulletin.
It would then move nearly west-southwestwards and cross south Tamil Nadu coast between Kanyakumari and Pamban in the wee hours of December 4, it said.
In south Tamil Nadu and south Kerala, heavy to very heavy rainfall is likely at a few places and extremely heavy showers at isolated places on December 3, the department had said earlier.
Similar spells could be expected on the preceding and following day as well in parts of the two states including Kanyakumari and Thiruvananthapuram, the IMD had said.
This is the second cyclone that is predicted to hit the state of Tamil Nadu in a week. Last week, a very severe cyclonic storm, Nivar, had battered the southern state.
Burevi is unlikely to be as intense as Nivar, IMD director general Mrutunjay Mohapatra said.