Ranchi: IMD on Friday issued a yellow alert for the state, warning of thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds with speeds of 30-40 kmph at isolated places over the next few days.The weather office has also forecast a fresh spell of increased rainfall in the state from Sept 24, under the influence of a developing weather system over the Andaman Sea.According to the IMD bulletin, an upper air cyclonic circulation was persisting over north Thailand at 8.30 am on Friday and extended up to 9.4 km above mean sea level. The system is likely to emerge over the north Andaman Sea by Friday evening and intensify into a low-pressure area around Saturday.It is expected to move west-northwest towards the south Odisha-north Andhra Pradesh coast over the next three to four days. Ranchi Met office head Baburaj PP said the system would likely bring increased rainfall activity to Jharkhand from Sept 24, continuing for three to four days.The weather office has forecast generally cloudy skies, with light to moderate rain or thundershowers at a few places in the state from Saturday onwards.Deputy director of the Ranchi Met office Abhishek Anand said south Jharkhand districts, including East Singhbhum, West Singhbhum, Seraikela-Kharsawan and Simdega, as well as central districts such as Ranchi, Bokaro, Dhanbad, Ramgarh, Khunti, Gumla, Lohardaga, Hazaribag and Koderma, could receive heavier rain.Residents have been advised to avoid open spaces during lightning and follow official weather advisories.In the 24 hours till Friday morning, Thethaitangar in Simdega recorded the state’s highest rainfall at 70.5 mm. Ranchi received 11.8 mm of rain.
