Cyclone Mocha Updates: Severe cyclonic storm Mocha over southeast, adjoining central Bay of Bengal, intensified into a very severe cyclonic storm, the IMD said on Friday morning.
The weather department stated that ‘Mocha’ moved northwards with a speed of 09 kmph during past six hours and intensified into a very severe cyclonic storm.
“At 5:30 am on May 12, the cyclone lay centered over central adjoining Southeast Bay of Bengal near latitude 13.2°N and longitude 88.1°E, about 520 km west-northwest of Port Blair, 1010 km south-southwest of Cox’s Bazar (Bangladesh) and 930 km south-southwest of Sittwe (Myanmar),” the Indian Meteorological Department said in a statement.
The weather department further said that it is very likely to move north-northeastwards and intensify further over east-central Bay of Bengal. It is likely to cross southeast Bangladesh and north Myanmar coasts between Cox’s Bazar (Bangladesh) and Kyaukpyu (Myanmar), close to Sittwe (Myanmar) around noon of May 14 as a very severe cyclonic storm with maximum sustained wind speed of 150-160 kmph gusting to 175 kmph.
#WATCH | Odisha: "Cyclone Mocha has intensified further into a very severe cyclone storm over the South-East Bay of Bengal adjoining with central Bay of Bengal region. Now it is moving with a speed of 9km per hour towards north direction…": Umashankar Das, IMD Scientist,… pic.twitter.com/A9nYnSV9DK
— ANI (@ANI) May 12, 2023
As Cyclone Mocha turned ‘severe’, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) deployed eight teams and 200 rescuers in West Bengal’s Digha. “Cyclone Mocha will convert into a severe storm on May 12 and a very severe cyclone on May 14, as per the predictions,” said Gurminder Singh, Commandant, 2nd Battalion, NDRF. He added that 200 rescuers of NDRF have been deployed on the ground and 100 rescuers are on standby.
Named by Yemen, Cyclone Mocha (pronounced Mokha) is set to intensify on Friday and re-curve north-northeastwards to make a landfall on Sunday between Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazaar and Kyaukpyu, close to port city Sittwe in Myanmar.