SHILLONG: The cyclonic storm Midhili caused causing heavy rainfall in Shillong and other parts of Meghalaya on Friday. In Shillong, the rains continued through November 17 and a lot of fog in many areas of the city, made it difficult for people to get to their offices on Saturday morning.
Following significant rain on Friday, the governments of several northeastern states issued alerts as a deep depression over the Bay of Bengal developed into a cyclonic storm. The inclement weather caused a setback for the first day of the Shillong Cherry Blossom Festival, one of the most important tourism events of Meghalaya, while states like Mizoram, Tripura, and Assam experienced varying degrees of rainfall.
Because of orographic precipitation, Meghalaya's high-elevation regions—such as the Khasi and Jaintia hills—experience lower temperatures and more rainfall. Shillong has its monsoon season from June to September, which includes a time of heavy rains. During this period, 3636 mm of precipitation falls on average in the city.
Cyclone "Midhili" made landfall in Bangladesh. With a maximum wind speed of 80 kmph, the cyclonic storm was expected to pass over the Sunderbans and make landfall on the coast of Bangladesh sometime on Friday night or early on Saturday morning, according to the IMD.
The organizers of the Cherry Blossom Festival in Meghalaya have announced that the first of the three-day event has been canceled due to adverse weather conditions. The third iteration of the festival was scheduled to be opened at Madan Kurkalang in the Ri-Bhoi district by Tourism Minister Paul Lyngdoh. But the adverse weather was a major setback of for the event as well as the large number of people arranging the campsites near the location.
Since Friday morning, rain and chilly winds have also been experienced in several locations of Assam, including Guwahati.
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