Tropical Cyclone Phyan makes landfall

Tropical Cyclone Phyan came ashore south of Mumbai last night after intensifying. An Orange alert was issued for the area which is one level below a Red Alert issued for the most severe cyclones. The storm was heading to the north and north northeast and seems to have suddenly taken a turn to the east, impacting the western Indian coast.

Tropical Cyclone Phyan Hits India’s Western Coast Near Mumbai (Bloomberg)

Tropical Cyclone Phyan hit India’s western coast near the commercial capital, Mumbai, prompting evacuations and storm warnings.

Phyan crossed the coast between Mumbai and Alibag, to the south of the city, between 3:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. local time and was forecast to track north-northeastward, the India Meteorological Department said on its Web site.

The system was likely to weaken from a deep depression to a depression during the night, after heavy rain and winds gusting to 70 kilometers (44 miles) per hour batter the coast of northern Maharashtra and southern Gujarat states, the department said in an advisory that was timed at 7 p.m. and posted at about 8:30 p.m.

Residents of slums in low-lying areas of Mumbai were told to evacuate, Mahesh Narvekar, the head of disaster management at Municipal Corp. of Greater Mumbai, aid by phone. An alert for strong winds and rain was issued for all 24 wards of the city, which has a population of 18 million.

Earlier reports indicated that the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Goa will be affected by the storm. Based on the windspeed, the primary concerns will be flooding and flash flooding due to heavy rain.

Video: Cyclone Phyan intensifies; Mumbai on alert (NDTV)


Mumbai Cyclone, Indian Meteorological Department, Weather Forecast India, Goa, Karnataka, Gujarat (Examiner)

Heavy rainfall has been reported from the Indian cities of Mumbai, Goa, Gujarat and Konkan region. The weather deparrtment in Mumbai has said that a tropical cyclone has strengthened over the Arabian Sea off the western coast.

The Indian meteorological department said that the cyclone named Phyan was about 250 km west of Goa at 2.30 a.m. As of Thursday morning an "orange" alert has been
issued. That is one step below the red alert given for a severe cyclone.

Reportedly the cyclone will hit Mumbai tomorrow around 5.30 am.

Met officials have said that the cyclone with winds of up to 75 kms per hour will hit the Indian states of southern Gujarat, Northern Maharashtra, Karnataka and Goa.