Bhubaneswar: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted heavy rainfall in coastal Odisha from September 19 as a low-pressure is most likely to form over the west-central and north-west Bay of Bengal in the next 72 hours.
According to Dr Sarat Chandra Sahu, former Director, Meteorological Centre, the low-pressure will form either in the evening on September 18 or in the morning the next day and then concentrate into a deep depression by September 20.
Under its influence, heavy rain will last most parts of the coastal and south coastal districts. While heavy to very heavy rainfall will lash the districts of Kandhamal, Nuapada, Balangir, Kalahandi, Nabarangpur, Koraput, Malkangiri, Gajapati and Rayagada from the night on September 20 till next morning, the districts of Khurda, Nayagarh and Puri will receive moderate rainfall during the period. The rainfall in these aforesaid districts will continue for three days till September 21.
The rainfall will recede from September 22 as the depression will move from the north-west Odisha towards the west of Chhattisgarh, Sahu added.
In an evening release on Saturday, the Meteorological Centre, Bhubaneswar, has sounded thunderstorm and lightning alert for the 17 districts of Balasore, Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar, Bhadrak, Angul, Dhenkanal, Sambalpur, Deogarh, Jharsuguda, Sundargarh, Ganjam, Khurda, Nayagarh, Cuttack, Puri, Jagatsinghpur and Jajpur and advised the people to stay indoors till 8.30 pm.
