Another low-pressure system forms over the Bay of Bengal after Mandous! Next Week’s Heavy Rainfall in Tamil Nadu
Thursday, December 15: Just over a week ago, a rare cyclone called Mandaus ravaged parts of South India, particularly the southeastern coast of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. The region has yet to fully recover from the impact of the storm; Those wounds may not get enough time to heal as another system has already started forming in the Bay of Bengal.
According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), a new low pressure is moving over the southeast Bay of Bengal and surrounding areas of the east-equatorial Indian Ocean. In fact, it will further intensify into a well-defined low-pressure system during the next 12 hours.
From there, it will gradually move westwards, reaching south BoB by Saturday morning while maintaining its well-defined intensity.
This low has already begun to have an impact on the weather in the Nicobar Islands, where it will drop fairly widespread rainfall with isolated heavy showers (64.5 mm-115.5 mm) over the next 24 hours.
As it approaches the Indian coast, the southern states will begin to feel its presence. The IMD has already forecast heavy rain across Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, and Karaikal for next Monday (December 19), and these severe conditions are expected to last throughout the week.
Stormy winds and rough seas are common with such systems, which is why fishermen have been advised not to venture into the south Andaman Sea on Thursday, southeast BoB until Friday, and southwest BoB on Friday and Saturday.
It remains to be seen whether this system will follow in the footsteps of Mandous and intensify into a Cyclonic Storm. By the beginning of next week, its evolution, movement, and overall impact should be clearer.
If it does strengthen into a cyclone, it will be the third post-monsoon cyclone to pass over the Bay of Bengal this year, following Sitrang during Diwali week in October and Mandous just last week.
Normally, the end of the cyclone season in the North Indian Ocean occurs in December, following the peak period between May and November. As a result, if a second cyclone forms in the coming weeks, December 2022 will go down in cyclone history as a highly unusual month.