Just as the State is picking up the pieces after cyclone Helen left in its wake a trail of death and devastation, another cyclone christened Lehar is moving menacingly towards coastal Andhra. It is expected to be more fearsome than its predecessor and is likely to make landfall between Machilipatnam and Kalingapatnam on Nov 28.
According to the Met department, Lehar lay centred at about 230 km east-southeast of Port Blair on Sunday evening. It is expected to move west-northwestwards and cross Andaman and Nicobar Islands, near Port Blair Sunday night.
“While the impact of cyclonic storm Helen is wearing off after it weakened, the impact of another cyclonic storm Lehar will not be felt till another 48 hours. However, the State is expected to experience heavy rainfall from November 26,” duty officer at the Cyclone Warning Centre in Visakhapatnam told Express. The cyclonic storm is likely to intensify into a severe cyclonic storm on Nov 25 and very severe cyclonic storm the next day. The State government has put collectors of all coastal districts on high alert. As the sea will remain very rough, fishermen have been advised not to venture into the sea this week.
Under Lehar’s influence, rain or thundershowers will occur at many places over Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Odisha and coastal and south interior Karnataka, the IMD said in its forecast for four days from Nov 28 to Dec 1.
Meanwhile, losses due to Helen were estimated to be around `1,628.66 crore. Disaster Management Commissioner C Parthasarathy said the maximum loss of `1,018 crore was suffered in East Godavari district.