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The landfall process of severe Cyclone Dana started at 11:30 pm on October 24, according to an update by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) at 12:15 am on October 25. The landfall process commenced as the forward sector of the eye wall entered land and may continue for the subsequent 3-4 hours, according to IMD.
The landfall has occurred close to Bhitarkanika National Park and Dhamara port, as previously predicted by the IMD. The peak wind speeds of the cyclone are 100-110 km/hr, with gusts of up to 120 km/hr.
At the commencement of the landfall process the cyclone lay about “50 km east-northeast of Paradip (Odisha), 40 km south-southeast of Dhamara (Odisha) and 160 km southwest of Sagar Island (West Bengal),” wrote the IMD on the social media platform X.
The cyclone is continuously being monitored by IMD’s doppler weather radars at Paradip and Gopalpur.
The cyclone is expected to bring high storm surge to the coastal districts and copious rainfall for many coastal and interior regions of Odisha and some parts of West Bengal.
The curious bit is that most of the fierce winds and rain bands, as visible in the satellite and radar imagery, are still at sea. Therefore, most of the impact of the cyclone would be experienced in the early morning hours as the landfall process gets completed.
Another interesting aspect about Cyclone Dana in the radar images is the almost non-existence of a clearly defined eye. Usually, a properly defined eye aids the cyclone in gaining moisture, strength and wind speeds.
After the landfall process, Cyclone Dana may recurve towards the southwest and bring torrents of rains to the interior of Odisha on October 25.
IMD expects the storm to remain a severe cyclone until around 5:30 am on October 25, after which it will start to lose strength and become a cyclone with peak wind speeds of 85-95 km/hr and gusts of upto 105 km/hr by 11:30 am on October 25. It may further de-intensify into a deep depression by the evening of October 25.