Amber advisory for severe lightning, with a low-pressure area expected in the Bay of Bengal by 13 October

The Department of Meteorology has issued an Amber Advisory for severe lightning, valid from Sunday until Monday, and says a low-pressure area is likely to form over the Southeast Bay of Bengal around 13 October, NewsFirst reported.

Where and what

Thundershowers with severe lightning are likely at several places in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central, Uva, North-western and Southern provinces, and in the Anuradhapura, Mannar and Vavuniya districts.

Fairly heavy falls above 75mm are likely at some places in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central, Uva and North-Western provinces and in the Galle, Matara, Anuradhapura and Mannar districts.

Temporarily strong gusty winds of 60-70 kmph can be expected during thundershowers. Misty conditions are likely at some places in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central and Uva provinces during the early hours of the morning.

At sea

Showers or thundershowers will occur at several places in the sea areas around the island. Winds will be north-easterly or variable at 20-30 kmph, and seas around the island will be slight as a baseline — but very rough conditions can be expected during thundershowers.

With the low-pressure area forecast for the Southeast Bay of Bengal, the department has asked naval and fishing communities to pay attention to its future forecasts and bulletins. The public has been asked to take adequate precautions against lightning and localised strong winds.

Context

This is the fourth severe-lightning advisory the department has issued in eleven days, after warnings on 1 October, 3 October and 8 October, the last of which coincided with spill gates opening at Deduru Oya.

Not reported

The filing does not say what the low-pressure area is expected to do after it forms, whether it is projected to intensify, or how it might affect Sri Lanka’s weather beyond the current advisory window. It gives no rainfall or lightning-strike figures for the past 24 hours, and no casualty or damage report.

This report rests on a single verified newsroom. Searches for other outlets’ filings on this advisory returned only older editions of the department’s recurring lightning warnings.

Source: NewsFirst.