COVID, Locusts, Heat Wave: People Wonder What Next as India Braces for Second Cyclone in Fortnight

The western Indian states of Maharashtra and Gujarat are likely to face a heavy rainstorm in the next 48 hours the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Sunday, noting that a low pressure area has formed over the Arabian Sea. Cyclonic storm “Nisarga” will reach the coasts of northern Maharashtra and southern Gujarat around the morning of 3 June, according to them.

Southern Gujarat, northern Konkan, central Maharashtra, Daman, Diu, as well as Dadra & Nagar Haveli are likely to face torrential rains on 3-4 June.

“We are expecting the rapid intensification of the cyclone, once formed because sea surface temperature is high, wind shear is low and ocean heat potential is also high. We want the state governments to be alert", Sunita Devi, in charge of cyclones at IMD said.

IMD will release the intensity of the cyclone later as it is still reading the developments. Meanwhile, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has been scrambled to different parts of Maharashtra in anticipation of the cyclone. Besides the deployment of six units of NDRF, three teams are already on standby in Mumbai.

Authorities have also issued a stern warning to fishermen and advised them not to venture into the southeast Arabian Sea, Lakshadweep area and along the Kerala coast until 3 June.

These back-to-back disasters have brought fourth biblical comparisons and forced people to think about the next crisis. Delhi witnessed temperatures of 47.6 degrees Celsius earlier this week, marking the warmest May in 18 years, while eastern India is struggling to revive from a massive loss due to a super cyclone on 20 May. The northern Indian states have, meanwhile, faced an unprecedented wave of locusts, leaving destruction in their wake.

​Some users launched online polls asking others to predict 2020's next crisis.