India on alert ahead of second powerful cyclone in 10 days

A severe cyclone is brewing in the Bay of Bengal off eastern India

NEW DELHI -- India’s eastern coast was on alert ahead of a severe cyclone brewing in the Bay of Bengal on Monday, just days after a powerful storm battered the country's western coast and killed at least 140 people. Cyclone Yaas is expected to make landfall on Wednesday and could pack sustained winds of up to 165 kilometers per hour (102 miles per hour), the India Meteorological Department said. It said the storm was forecast to hit the eastern states of West Bengal and Odisha. Disaster relief teams have already been deployed in the two states for potential rescue and recovery operations and the coastal areas are being evacuated. India’s air force and navy said they have kept some of helicopters and vessels ready to carry out relief work. Yaas will be the second storm to hit India in 10 days after Cyclone Tauktae killed at least 140 people across western states last week. Nearly 70 of those killed were on board a barge that ripped free of its anchors in the storm and sank off Mumbai's coast.