NDRF teams are being sent to Odisha, West Bengal in view of alert regarding Cyclone Yaas.
After 'Cyclone Tauktae' ravaged the west coast of the country earlier this week, the east coast is now facing the threat of 'Cyclone Yaas'. The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has begun positioning its teams in West Bengal and Odisha following the weather department's alert that the cyclone may hit these states on the eastern coast of the country around May 26-27,
NDRF teams which are currently involved in rescue and restoration work in regions affected by Cyclone Tauktae are being called back to be relocated.
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NDRF Director General S N Pradhan tweeted that the force has decided to "airlift" West Bengal and Odisha-based teams of the force in view of Cyclone Yaas and its 'possible impact' in the coastal districts of the two states.
The exact number of NDRF teams to be earmarked for the latest cyclone will be decided as per inputs received from the India Meteorological Department.
The central force had earmarked a total of 101 teams for the extremely severe cyclonic storm Tauktae that developed in the Arabian Sea and mainly affected the costal areas of Gujarat and states like Maharashtra and Goa, apart from a few others on the western coastline of the country.
Talking about Yaas, the IMD had on Thursday said that a low pressure area is very likely to form over north Andaman Sea and adjoining east-central Bay of Bengal around May 22.
"It is very likely to intensify gradually into a cyclonic storm during the subsequent 72 hours. It is very likely to move northwestwards and reach West Bengal-Odisha coasts around 26th May evening," the Cyclone Warning Division of the IMD had said.
The name Yaas has been given to the potential cyclone by Oman, as per a standard protocol of naming such cyclonic storms in rotation by affected countries in the same area.
Tauktae made landfall on Monday night near Una town in Gir Somnath district of Gujarat and wreaked havoc for around 28 hours before it weakened into a depression.
(With PTI inputs)
