There will be no respite for rain-battered Odisha as the Met office on Friday warned of another spell of heavy showers for the next two days due to the possible formation of a new low-pressure area.
The weather system is set to form over north Bay of Bengal during the next 24 hours under the influence of a cyclonic circulation, which lies over west Myanmar, the Bhubaneswar Meteorological Centre said.
It is expected to become more marked during subsequent 24 hours and move northwestwards, according to a bulletin. Heavy rain occurred at some places in Sundargarh, Deogarh, Sambalpur and Kendrapara over a 24-period till 8.30 am on Friday, the Met said.
Tensa in Sundargarh and Barkot in Deogarh received 113 mm of precipitation, followed by 90 mm at Kuchinda in Sambalpur. Odisha is already reeling under the effects of a downpour, caused due to a depression. It led to flooding of villages and low-lying areas across many districts, collapse of several bridges over swollen rivers, and landslides disrupting road connectivity.
Jalaka river is in spate in Balasore and and Baitarani in Bhadrak following heavy showers in the upper catchment areas. Intense rain has led to waterlogging in many areas of Keonjhar. The Hirakud dam opened six more sluice gates to release excess water. Currently, the reservoir is releasing water through 20 gates.
The Met office issued an orange alert of very heavy rain in the districts of Khurda, Cuttack, Puri, Balasore, Bhadrak, Dhenkanal, Ganjam, Gajapati, Jajpur, Jagatsinghpur, Kandhamal, Kalahandi, Kendrapara and Nayagarh on Saturday.
It warned of extremely heavy precipitation at few places in Kalahandi, Bolangir, Nuapada and Nabarangpur on Sunday, besides heavy to very heavy showers across the state.
Fisherfolk have been advised not to venture into the sea off the coast till Monday as squally weather with wind speed of 45-65 kmph is expected over the west-central Bay of Bengal.
(With PTI inputs)
