Cyclone Fani latest update: Landfall in TN, AP ruled out; Odisha under 'continuous watch'

Chennai, Apr 29: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Monday ruled out Cyclone Fani making a landfall in Tamil Nadu or Andhra Pradesh, but maintained that it would intensify into "severe cyclonic storm" by tomorrow (April 30).

Cyclone Fani is likely to continue moving North West and may change its path to North East from May 1, said the latest IMD statement.

Possibility of landfall in Odisha, however, has not been ruled out and the coastal state is under 'continuous watch'.

"Cyclonic storm Fani is expected to intensify into very severe cyclonic storm by Apr 30. It will continue to move North West and change its path to North East from May 1. Landfall over Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh is ruled out. Possibility of landfall in Odisha is under continuous watch," news agency ANI quoted IMD as saying.

On April 27, the IMD had said that Fani will reach near the coasts of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, but was unlikely that 'it would make a landfall'. "It may recurve before reaching the coast," Mritunjay Mohapatra, Additional Director General of the IMD, had said.

According to an earlier alert by the Cyclone Warning Division of IMD, Cyclone Fani was very likely to reach near the coasts of north Tamil Nadu and south Andhra Pradesh by the evening of April 30.

An earlier warning also said that the wind speed may touch as high as 150 km per hour to 175 km per hour in parts of Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Andhra Pradesh by May 1.

Cyclone Fani, that has been gaining strength in the south-east Bay of Bengal, is likely to intensify into a very severe cyclonic storm in the next 24 hours, the weather department said on Sunday. It is likely to bring light to moderate rain across Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh over the next two days.

Cyclone Warning Division on Sunday afternoon said 'Fani' currently lays over 745 kilometres east-southeast of Trincomalee (Sri Lanka), 1,050 kilometres southeast of Chennai (Tamil Nadu) and 1,230 kilometres south-southeast of Machilipatnam (Andhra Pradesh).

Under the category of Very Severe Cyclonic storm, Fani is expected to reach at a speed of 140-150 kmph on Tuesday. Heavy rainfall at isolated places are very likely over Kerala also on 29 and 30 April.