IMD issues orange warning for four Odisha districts; widespread rain likely till August 7

Bhubaneswar, Aug 2: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange warning for Balangir, Bargarh, Mayurbhanj, and Nuapada districts, cautioning about moderate thunderstorms, lightning, and rainfall with wind speeds reaching 30-40 kmph in the next three hours, till around 6 PM today.

In its midday bulletin, the IMD reported that a cyclonic circulation is persisting over the northern parts of Gangetic West Bengal, contributing to unstable weather conditions. The agency has also predicted heavy rain with thunderstorms/lightning and gusty winds in parts of Keonjhar, Mayurbhanj, and Sundargarh till Sunday morning.

Additionally, thunderstorms with gusty surface winds (30-40 kmph) may occur at one or two places in districts including Jharsuguda, Sambalpur, Deogarh, Angul, Dhenkanal, Balasore, Bhadrak, Cuttack, Jajpur, Kendrapada, Jagatsinghpur, Khurda, Puri, Nayagarh, Ganjam, and Gajapati.

A yellow warning has been issued for August 3, with similar weather expected in the aforementioned districts, including Keonjhar, Mayurbhanj, and Sundargarh.

Though no major alerts are in place beyond August 3, light to moderate rainfall is expected across Odisha over the next seven days. The IMD also hinted at the formation of an upper-air cyclonic circulation or low-pressure system over the north Bay of Bengal and adjoining West Bengal/Bangladesh coasts during the upcoming week, which may influence widespread rain till August 7.