Cyclone Gaja to strike Tamil Nadu with flooding, damaging winds through late week

Cyclonic Storm Gaja, which formed this past weekend in the Bay of Bengal, will track westward through southern India in the coming days. Gaja is expected to strengthen into a severe cyclonic storm by Wednesday and produce winds equal to a Category 1 hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean. A track to the west and southwest through the middle of the week will take the strengthening cyclone toward the coastline of Tamil Nadu and bring impacts ranging from flooding rainfall and mudslides to damaging winds. Prior to reaching the coast of southern India, Gaja will cause hazardous seas for shipping and fishing interests along India’s southeast coastline.Currently, Gaja is expected to make landfall in southern Tamil Nadu on Thursday afternoon or evening. A landfall between Velankanni and Chidambaram is expected at this time; however, locations from northern Sri Lanka and far southern Tamil Nadu northward to Puducherry should monitor this tropical cyclone closely.

While there is a chance that the cyclone could weaken some as it approaches land on Thursday, it could still bring significant impacts.

Any shift in track could be a dramatic difference in impacts across the region, as damaging winds will be confined to an area near and north of Gaja’s track.

Wind speeds of 80-90 km/h are expected near the storms center, with gusts up to 100 km/h possible. This is equivalent to a tropical storm in the Atlantic and eastern Pacific basins.

Winds of this magnitude are capable of bringing down tree limbs and causing power outages. Some damage to structures is also possible.

While damaging winds are expected to remain close to the storm’s track, downpours will expand much farther to the north.

https://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/cyclone-gaja-to-strike-tamil-nadu-with-flooding-damaging-winds-through-late-week/70006609