The Kerala region is classified as Category II A in terms of cyclone vulnerability. Screengrab of IMD websiteKerala is relatively cyclone-safe, going by India Meteorology Department (IMD) data.
About 5 Cyclonic storms (CS) and 18 Severe Cyclonic Storms (SCS) hit Kerala between 1891 to 2007, as per IMD's cyclone database. Two of these formed over the Arabian sea and made landfall in Kerala as severe cyclonic storms. In Kerala, the districts of Malappuram and Kochi are the worst-it usually.
The Kerala region is classified as Category II A in terms of cyclone vulnerability. This means there is low probability of getting affected by cyclonic activity. Other category II A states are Tamil Nadu, Maharastra, Goa, Karnataka, and the Union Territories of Daman & Diu, Puducherry, Lakshadweep and Adaman & Nicobar islands.
Cyclone Ochki wreaked havoc in the southern districts of Kerala.The IMD cyclone database says, in the past 35 years, at least seven SCS-intensity winds originated over the Bay of Bengal. All these crossed the eastern coast of the country and re-emerged in the Arabian sea as depression.
Reports in earliest instance of cyclone, according to the available information, was at Punnayur grama panchayat of Chavakkad block in Thrissur in 1908. The Chavakkad area was hit by cyclones on two more occasions, in 1940 December and 1941 May.
On November 30, Cyclone Ockhi with a speed of 75km/hr was heading towards the Kerala coast.
Read more: Latest Kerala news | Holiday declared for all educational institutions in Kerala
