Due to the anticipated impact of Cyclone Dana on the coastal region of West Bengal, including Kolkata, all flight operations at Kolkata Airport will remain suspended from 6 pm on October 24, to 9 am on October 25, said airport officials on Wednesday.
“This decision is in response to the forecasted heavy winds and very heavy rainfall in the area,” said an official.
Officials at the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata, have conducted preparedness meetings, including a key meeting held at 5 pm on Wednesday, with all stakeholders and the IMD Kolkata director.
The IMD director informed that wind speeds in Kolkata and surrounding areas could reach 60-70 kmph, gusting up to 80 kmph, with heavy to very heavy rain expected. To ensure the safety of passengers and aircraft, all stakeholders, including ATC, CNS, and other key airport officials, unanimously decided to suspend operations from 6 pm on October 24 to 9 am on October 25.
“Accordingly, NOTAM action has been initiated,” read a statement issued by Kolkata Airport.
The Eastern Railway has also decided to suspend all local train services from Sealdah station starting 8 pm on Thursday until 10 am on Friday due to the cyclonic storm Dana, according to officials.
This decision has been taken as a precautionary measure for the safety of passengers in the Sealdah division, which serves six districts of West Bengal: North 24 Parganas, South 24 Parganas, Nadia, Murshidabad, Kolkata, and Howrah.
Cyclone Dana, currently located over the East-Central Bay of Bengal, has moved northwestward at a speed of 12 kmph over the past six hours and was centered at 2.30 pm IST on Wednesday about 540 km south-southeast of Sagar Island, West Bengal.
According to the weather office, it is expected to intensify into a severe cyclonic storm over the Northwest Bay of Bengal by the early morning of October 24 and cross the North Odisha and West Bengal coasts between Puri and Sagar Island, near Bhitarkanika and Dhamara (Odisha), during the night of October 24 to the morning of October 25. The cyclone is expected to bring wind speeds of 100-110 kmph, gusting up to 120 kmph.
“As a severe cyclonic storm, there is a high likelihood that it will cross North Odisha and Sagar Island in West Bengal between Puri, with wind speeds ranging from 100 to 110 kmph,” said Dr Somenath Dutta, Head of the Regional Meteorological Centre, Kolkata.