The coasts of Bangladesh and adjacent West Bengal are bracing for the year鈥檚 first cyclonic storm, which is forecast to make landfall as a severe cyclonic storm by Sunday.
The cyclonic storm will be called Remal.
The Disaster Management and Relief Ministry has convened an inter-ministerial preparatory meeting at 11:00am today to decide their next course of action, potentially involving the evacuation of millions.
The Bangladesh Meteorological Department, in its weather bulletin issued聽 at 6:00pm on Friday, said that the depression that lay over the east-central Bay of Bengal was likely to further intensify.
鈥楾he Bay of Bengal is likely brewing a cyclonic storm,鈥� Toriful Newaz Kabir told 抖阴精品, adding that it was still too early to predict the track of the potential storm.
The depression was still unstable, making it hard to predict its next course of action, he said.
Meteorologist Bazlur Rashid predicted that the storm might start making landfall by Sunday evening.
At 12:00am on Friday, the depression was 805km southwest of Chattogram port, 740km southwest of Cox鈥檚 Bazar port, 765km south of Mongla port, and 730km south of Payra port.
The storm was likely to intensify and move northeastward, the BMD said in a special weather bulletin issued at 3:00pm.
The maximum sustained wind within 44km of the depression was 40kmph. The maritime ports of Chattogram, Cox鈥檚 Bazar, Mongla, and Payra have been advised to hoist signal number one.
All fishing boats and trawlers have been advised to remain close to the shore and proceed with caution under further notice.
India-based Skymet Weather had identified the position of the newly-developed weather system in the Bay of Bengal as 鈥榲ery unusual鈥� at this time of the year when it started as a low-pressure area on May 22.
Normally, the pre-monsoon systems in the month of May originate over the South Andaman Sea and the Southeast Bay of Bengal, said Skymet Weather.
The USA-based The Weather Channel said that the region鈥檚 sea surface temperatures are above 30C, with some areas in the central and northern Bay of Bengal reaching 32C or more, providing the necessary heat and moisture needed for creating a storm.
At 4:30pm on Friday, the India Meteorological Department reported the movement of the depression at a speed of 16kmph over the past six hours.
The IMD predicted the depression to turn into a storm by this morning over the east-central Bay of Bengal and then move northward and intensify into a severe cyclonic storm by tonight.
The severe cyclonic storm is likely to cross Bangladesh and adjoining West Bengal coasts between Sagar Island and Khepupara around May 26.
Heavy to very heavy rainfall is likely to accompany the storm, the IMD said, predicting rainfall in north coastal Odisha, coastal West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Manipur, Tripura, and Nagaland.聽
The cyclone鈥檚 path will significantly impact the monsoon鈥檚 arrival in India. The cyclone鈥檚 movement towards Myanmar could delay the monsoon鈥檚 arrival, according to The Weather Channel.
In a press release on Friday, the Bangladesh Water Development Board announced the opening of a 24-hour control room at its Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre to update people on the forecast and effects of the potential cyclone.
The control room can be contacted at 02-2222-30070, 01765405576, and 01559728158.
As the storm brewed over the Bay of Bengal, the entire country got baked in a mild to moderate heatwave for the second consecutive day, with the BMD forecasting that the temperature might fall slightly over the coastal area by today.
The BMD said that rain accompanied by temporary gusty wind is likely to occur at many places over Dhaka, Khulna, Barishal, Chattogram, and Sylhet divisions and at one or two places over Rangpur, Rajshahi, and Mymensingh divisions.
Rain is likely over most of Bangladesh on Sunday, the BMD predicted, potentially causing the day temperature to drop by 5C and the night temperature to fall by 3C.
On Friday, Bangladesh鈥檚 highest maximum day air temperature was recorded to be 38.5C in Ishwardi and Rangamati.
The day temperature hit 38C in Dhaka.
Bangladesh鈥檚 highest rainfall of 40mm was recorded in Noakhali.