Early on Saturday, a landslide in Tamil Nadu's Nilgiris district turned deadly, claiming the life of a bus driver and injuring the conductor. The Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation bus was ambushed by a cascade of mud and uprooted trees near Burliyar, leaving it engulfed in debris.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has sounded the alarm for heavy rainfall in several regions, with Tamil Nadu and Kerala under particular scrutiny. A brewing low-pressure area over the Bay of Bengal is on track to morph into a cyclonic storm, potentially hitting the north Andhra Pradesh and south Odisha coasts by October 28.
Facing the impending threat, the Odisha government has acted swiftly, ordering a shutdown of schools and colleges in five districts for October 28 and 29. This is part of a larger strategy to mitigate casualties as the storm looms.
The IMD is predicting moderate to heavy rainfalls in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry through October 26. Districts like Villupuram, Cuddalore, and Coimbatore should brace for heavy to very heavy showers, while Chennai and its vicinity could be in for significant downpours over the weekend.
Kerala is also on high alert, with a red alert in place for several districts due to forecasted extreme rainfall on Sunday and Monday. Malappuram, Kozhikode, and Wayanad are on red alert for October 25, while Idukki and Palakkad face similar warnings on October 26.
Meanwhile, Telangana, grappling with a rainfall deficit, is hoping the weather system over the Bay of Bengal will deliver much-needed rain. The IMD anticipates heavy to extremely heavy rainfall in three districts on October 28, as the system is expected to make landfall along the Andhra Pradesh coast.
Due to the adverse weather forecast, President Droupadi Murmu has postponed her planned visit to Odisha. Initially slated for October 28, the visit has been rescheduled to November 4-5.
In Andhra Pradesh, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has directed officials to gear up for the anticipated heavy rains. He stressed the need to harness the rains to fill reservoirs and irrigation tanks, urging caution and proactive measures as the cyclone approaches.
Rajasthan has seen light to moderate rain in isolated areas due to a western disturbance, though the weather is expected to stay dry across most of the state in the coming days.
The IMD's latest bulletin indicates that the low-pressure area over the Bay of Bengal is likely to evolve into a depression by Saturday, a deep depression by Sunday, and eventually a cyclonic storm by Monday morning. The storm is forecasted to track west-northwestwards, intensifying further as it nears the Andhra Pradesh coast around October 28.
