The sea storm ‘Dana’ weakened after making landfall along the Odisha coast late Thursday night. As a result, heavy rainfall persisted in more than a dozen areas of Odisha throughout the evening. Strong winds caused numerous trees and electricity poles to fall in both Odisha and Bengal. The impact of Dana is still significant, with the weather department forecasting continued heavy rain in these regions. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted heavy rainfall in several districts of Odisha until Saturday. The central government has issued a red alert for the districts of Bhadrak, Balasore, Keonjhar, and Mayurbhanj, and an orange alert for Kendrapara, Cuttack, Jajpur, and Dhenkanal. A red alert for extreme rainfall has also been declared in nine districts of Odisha.
The IMD warns that although the cyclone threat has diminished, intense rainfall is expected to continue for several more hours. According to the Bhubaneswar Meteorological Center, the highest recorded rainfall in the past 24 hours was 158 millimeters in Chandbali, Bhadrak district, followed closely by 156 mm in the Rajkanika area of Kendrapara district.
In Kerala, heavy rain has been falling since Friday morning, leading to waterlogging on roads and traffic congestion, thereby disrupting normal life. The weather department has issued an orange alert in eight districts of the state. The forecast predicts extremely heavy rainfall due to cyclonic conditions forming over the Arabian Sea off the southern Kerala coast, expected to last until October 27. The IMD anticipates moderate rain with thunderstorms and strong winds in places within the districts of Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, and Wayanad.
Improved Air Quality Due to Strong Winds
Thanks to the strong winds, air quality levels showed further improvement on Friday. After remaining in the ‘very poor’ category for four consecutive days, Delhi’s Air Quality Index (AQI) dropped below 300, falling into the ‘poor’ category. However, the Central Ministry of Earth Sciences’ air quality forecasting system indicates that the AQI is likely to return to the ‘very poor’ category on Saturday, with similar conditions expected to persist on Sunday. Following that, the situation could worsen, potentially pushing the AQI into the ‘severe’ category.