Arabian Sea racked by two cyclones at once for the first time — one rages on as the other simmers

• Arabian Sea is host to two cyclone storms simultaneously for the very first time.
  
• Cyclone Kyarr is heading away from the Indian coast, while Cyclone Maha is wreaking havoc in Lakshadweep.
  
• Fishing operations along the coast have been suspended and fishermen have been advised not to take their boats out till November 4.
  

Weather history is in the making as the Arabian Sea is being subject two cyclones simultaneously. It’s a historical first with Cyclone Kyarr is weakening but moving closer to India’s coastline while Cyclone Maha is gaining momentum but expected to shift westward.

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has been collecting data on cyclones in India’s oceans for the past 125 years, and they have no record of any such instance happening in the past.


The only time that India has been subjected to simultaneous cyclones in the same water body was back in December 1972, according to COMK — a website that tracks weather in Chennai.

Even then, it was the Bay of Bengal that witnessed one cyclone heading towards the coast of Tamil Nadu while another approached over the South China Sea.

Some experts are predicting that the Fujiwhara effect might take place, which is when the vortices of two adjacent cyclones start to orbit each other. It’s even possible that the vortices may merge.

Fishermen advised to steer clear

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) predicts heavy rainfall over Lakshadweep, Kerala, coastal Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. It also expects the sea conditions in the Arabian Sea to remain anywhere between rough to high.

Cyclone Kyarr, the most severe cyclone that the Arabian Sea has seen in the past 12 years, has nearly come and gone. But Cyclone Maha has put areas on high alert since yesterday.

Fishing operations in the Lakshadweep area have been suspended and fishermen have been advised to stay away from east central Arabian Sea till November 4.

According to IMD’s alert, thatched houses are in danger of having their rooftops blown off, power lines may get damaged, coastal crops might suffer and there’s a probability that roads might be flooded.