India is a country in the north of Indian Ocean that is the most vulnerable to getting hit by tropical cyclones in the basin, from the east or from the west. On average, 2–3 tropical cyclones make landfall in India each year, with about one being a severe tropical cyclone or greater.
Background
India is a country in Asia that is bounded by the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal, while it shares land borders with Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Myanmar, Nepal and Pakistan. India is also located within the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives, while its Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a maritime border with Thailand, Myanmar and Indonesia. On average around 2 to 4 tropical cyclones impact India every year, while most of these tropical cyclones impact the east coast of Indian states of West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu.
From the 1960s to the mid-2000s, 65% of global tropical cyclone fatalities were located in the Bay of Bengal.
The west coast of India is less prone to cyclones; one cyclone out of every two to four hits the west coast and that is loved, with the majority of them occurring in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka and Kerala.
Four stage warning The IMD issues warnings in four stages for the Indian coast.
Stages Warning MeaningStage 1style="background-color:#; text-align:center; vertical-align: middle;" title="Cyclone Watch" Cyclone WatchIssued 72 hours in advance, it discusses the likelihood of development of a cyclonic disturbance in the north Indian Ocean and the coastal region likely to experience adverse weather.Stage 2style="background-color:#; text-align:center; vertical-align: middle;" title="Cyclone Alert" Cyclone AlertIssued 48 hours in advance of the commencement of adverse weather over the coastal areas. Stage 3style="background-color:#; text-align:center; vertical-align: middle;" title="Cyclone Warning" Cyclone WarningIssued 24 hours in advance of the commencement of adverse weather over the coastal areas. The location of landfall is discussed at this stage.Stage 4style="background-color:#;text-align:center; vertical-align: middle;" title="Landfall Outlook" Landfall OutlookIssued 12 hours in advance of the commencement of adverse weather over the coastal areas. The track of the cyclone after the landfall and the possible impact inland is discussed at this stage.
List of tropical cyclones by year
Note that records before 1960 are largely unreliable and storms that stayed at sea were often only reported by ship reports.
1860s
A powerful cyclone hit Calcutta on 5 October 1864, killing an estimated 60,000 people.
November 1867 Great Calcutta cyclone The anemometer in the city was blown away during the cyclone. A lack of storm surge minimized the overall damage from this system.
1880s June 1885 Aden cyclone A cyclone had formed near the Laccadive Islands on 24 May, west of southern India. The SS Mergui encountered the cyclone off the Horn of Africa, east of Socotra on 1 June and reported it stronger than the tropical cyclone which struck Calcutta in 1864. Just before midnight on the night of 1 June, the Diomed reported winds of hurricane force and a pressure of . The ship Peshawar reported a westerly hurricane at the east end of the Gulf of Aden towards midnight on the night of 2 June. At noon on 3 June, the Tantallon reported a pressure of near 12.5N 45.5E. On 3 June, the German corvette Augusta, the French dispatch boat Renard, and the British ship SS Speke Hall were lost in the storm in the Gulf of Aden. The system continued westward and shrank in scale as it moved into the entrance of the Red Sea, crossing the coast of Djibouti. It became the first North Indian Ocean tropical cyclone in recorded history to transit the gulf of Aden with fully hurricane intensity and held the record of westernmost landfalling North Indian Ocean tropical cyclone ever and also the only recorded tropical cyclone to make landfall in the nation of Djibouti.
1885 Odisha cyclone An intense cyclone struck Odisha. It may have killed many lives however there was no evidence of this during those era.
1888 Gujarat Cyclone In November a violent cyclonic storm with hurricane-force winds struck Gujarat causing a ship to sink. Around 1,300 people are killed during the storm.
1891 Siam Cyclone or Port Blair cyclone of 1891 A cyclone had formed in Philippine Sea as depression and made landfall on Philippines. And continue to its path, developed to Tropical Storm before entered Gulf Of Thailand. As it entered, it became typhoon and strengthening into Category-5 Status Tropical Cyclone. It made landfall on Thailand and then toward to Port Blair as Category-5 Tropical Cyclone. Siam Cyclone had weakening into Category-3 Status before made landfall at Northern India.
1900s
1902 In May 1902, a cyclonic storm struck the coast in the vicinity of Karachi.
1907
In June 1907, a tropical storm struck the coast near Karachi.
1910s
1910s
13–16 April 1910 – A intense tropical existed over Andaman Sea.
1920s 1928
31 December 1927 – 5 January 1928 – A depression existed over the southern Bay of Bengal. 29 February – 6 March 1928 – A depression existed over the northeaster Arabian Sea. 24–28 March 1928 – A cyclonic storm existed over the southern Bay of Bengal.
1929 There were 15 depressions and 6 cyclonic storms.
1930s 2–7 May 1930 – A cyclonic storm existed over the southern Bay of Bengal. 10–13 May 1930 – A cyclonic storm existed over the northern Bay of Bengal. 14–16 June 1930 – A shallow depression existed over the northeastern Bay of Bengal. 20–23 June 1930 – A depression existed over the southeastern Arabian Sea. 27–30 June 1930 – A cyclonic storm existed over the eastern Arabian Sea. 28 June – 1 July 1930 – A cyclonic storm existed over the eastern Bay of Bengal. 8–10 July 1930 – A shallow depression existed over the northern Bay of Bengal. 11–13 July 1930 – A cyclonic storm existed over the northern Bay of Bengal. 21–24 July 1930 – A depression existed over the northern Bay of Bengal. 6–8 September 1930 – A depression existed over the Andaman Sea.
1936
1940s 17–25 May 1940 – A severe cyclonic storm existed over the Bay of Bengal. 23–27 June 1940 – A cyclonic storm existed over the Bay of Bengal. 29 June – 5 July 1940 – A severe cyclonic storm existed over the Bay of Bengal. 6–11 July 1940 – A severe cyclonic storm existed over the Bay of Bengal. 1–11 August 1940 – A cyclonic storm existed over the Bay of Bengal. 11–16 August 1940 – A depression existed over the Bay of Bengal. 18–26 August 1940 – A depression existed over the Bay of Bengal. 26 August – 1 September 1940 – A depression existed over the Bay of Bengal. 14–24 September 1940 – A depression existed over the Bay of Bengal. 17–21 September 1940 – A depression existed over the Bay of Bengal. 9–20 October 1940 – A severe cyclonic storm existed over the Arabian Sea. 19–22 October 1940 – A severe cyclonic storm existed over the Bay of Bengal. 3–13 November 1940 – A severe cyclonic storm existed over the Arabian Sea. 11–18 November 1940 – A depression existed over the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea. 14–24 November 1940 – A cyclonic storm existed over the Bay of Bengal. 19–30 December 1940 – A depression existed over the Bay of Bengal.
November 1940 Mumbai Cyclone In November 1940, a severe cyclone struck Mumbai, with gusts reaching reached 121 km/h in Colaba. There were bodies floating in floodwaters, and the cyclone cost the city 25 lakh rupees.
1950s
8–13 April 1950 – A deep depression existed over the Bay of Bengal. 23–30 May 1950 – A deep depression existed over the Bay of Bengal. 8–12 June 1950 – A cyclonic storm existed over the Bay of Bengal. 23–28 June 1950 – A depression existed over the Bay of Bengal. 10–12 July 1950 – A depression existed over the Bay of Bengal. 11–15 July 1950 – A depression existed over land. 25–30 July 1950 – A depression existed over the Bay of Bengal. 3–7 August 1950 – A depression existed over land. 9–15 August 1950 – A depression existed over the Bay of Bengal. 1–5 September 1950 – A depression existed over land. 9–11 September 1950 – A depression existed over the Bay of Bengal. 12–19 September 1950 – A cyclonic storm existed over the Bay of Bengal. 22–24 September 1950 – A depression existed over the Bay of Bengal. 17–22 October 1950 – A depression existed over the Bay of Bengal. 16–20 November 1950 – A cyclonic storm existed over the Bay of Bengal. 2–6 December 1950 – A cyclonic storm existed over the Bay of Bengal. In June 1956, a cyclone struck Midnapore and killed 480 people.
1960s 1960
The season was above average with five cyclones forming and one making landfall over India.
1961
The season was above average, with five cyclones forming and three making landfall over India.
Severe Cyclonic Storm Four struck Southwestern India in May and did considerable damage.
1962
The season included four cyclones, with one entering from the West Pacific Ocean, making a total of five cyclones.
1963
The season was above average with seventeen depressions forming. Out of them, six cyclones formed with four making landfall in India. The season includes the first Super Cyclonic Storm to be recorded in the satellite era.
Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm Two caused heavy rainfall in Laccadive Islands. It was considered as one of the strongest Arabian Sea cyclone until 2001 India Cyclone based on the pressure. Deep Depression Four produced torrential rains in parts of Eastern India. Deep Depression Nine caused 15 deaths form flooding in Orissa. Very Severe Cyclonic Storm Twelve caused some damage and flooding in India, with loss of life also being reported.
1964
The season was above average, with seven cyclones forming, three of which made landfall over India and one threatened the coast.
Super Cyclonic Storm Sixteen was the most powerful cyclone to strike Tamil Nadu and Ceylon. It also overturned a passenger train and killed 200 people on board. It destroyed the town of Dhanushkodi because of a storm surge and after that, the Government of Madras said that it was 'unfit for human civilization' and declared as a ghost town.
1965
This season included three deadly back-to-back cyclones which affected West Bengal and Bangladesh collectively in the months of May, June and November, killing up to 50,000 people.
1966
The season was above average, with eight cyclones forming and six intensifying further into severe cyclonic storms.
A cyclone struck Madras (now Chennai) on 3 November, killing over 50 people and leaving 800,000 people homeless."On the Editor's Desk". Mariners Weather Log. Environmental Science Services Administration. 11 (2): 52. March 1967.
1967
1968
1969
This season included two back-to-back cyclones affecting Andhra Pradesh in May and November, killing 900 people collectively.
1970s 1970
The season was above average, with seven cyclones forming, two of which made landfall over India.
Cyclonic Storm Four made landfall over Odisha in the month of June and brought widespread rainfall over East and Central India. Many places received more than 10 cm of rainfall at a single day. Cyclonic Storm Eight formed as a land depression in the month of September and skirted the whole nation before entering into the Arabian Sea and intensifying up to the stage of cyclonic storm. Many states which were located in the track received heavy rainfall up to 40 cm. Very Severe Cyclonic Storm Twelve on its initial stages brought heavy rainfall over Tamil Nadu and made landfall at West Bengal in the month of November. Kolkata received gust winds as high as 120 kmph and Shillong received heavy rainfall up to 22 cm. Bangladesh suffered worst damage by the storm killing 290 people. The amount of damage in India was unknown.