False and misleading information is being widely shared on social media regarding the current disaster situation in the country. Currently, social media posts are shared stating that another cyclone will affect the country in the coming days, creating undue fear in society. This is a fact-check we did on that.
Social Media Posts :
A social media post was shared with the caption, “This is true as predicted. Another depression is coming, with heavy rain and thunderstorms.”
This post was shared by so many social media users.
The post states that a more severe depression will form in the Southeast in a few days, with possible severe lightning across the country. However, it also mentions that it is still uncertain whether this will affect Sri Lanka. Additionally, it also mentions many other phenomena, including future earthquakes, that may occur with it.
These posts had caused fear in society, and we conducted a fact-check to verify the credibility of these social media posts.
Fact Check :
Department of Meteorology
Accordingly, we inquired about this from the Deputy Director General of the Department of Meteorology, Ms Anusha Warnasuriya. She confirmed that such a cyclone is not expected in the coming few days. However, she stated that November and December are periods when Sri Lanka can normally be affected by cyclones.
Furthermore, the Department of Meteorology had posted an announcement on the official Facebook page of the Department of Meteorology regarding the upcoming weather conditions in Sri Lanka. Accordingly,
The Department has confirmed that the information currently circulating on social media that another cyclone will affect Sri Lanka in the coming days in December is false.
The explanation states that a cyclone does not form suddenly and that it must pass through several stages of low pressure, depression, and deep depression to develop from a disturbance to a cyclone, which takes several days. However, analyses have not yet identified any development of a disturbance in the lower atmosphere near Sri Lanka in the coming week.
Furthermore, it states that since such a situation can be identified about 5 days in advance during data analysis, the Meteorological Department can inform the public about it in advance. The public has been informed through the announcement not to create unnecessary fear and to be attentive to the forecasts and announcements issued by the department.
The full statement issued by the Meteorological Department is below.
The mainstream media also published information confirmed by the Meteorological Department regarding this, and more media reports on this can be found here and here.
A Meteorologist on duty at the Department of Meteorology, Mr Malith Fernando, says that the risk of a severe cyclone in the upcoming days is minimal and that the department is constantly monitoring the weather situation.
“Ditwa” out of Sri Lanka
Cyclone “Ditwa”, which caused severe damage to Sri Lanka, has moved away from the island, and currently does not have a direct impact on the weather in the land area of Sri Lanka, which means it will no longer cause rain in Sri Lanka.
However, due to the impact of strong winds, the advice to refrain from further fishing and navigation activities in the sea areas from Trincomalee to Mannar via Kankasanthurai remains valid.
The warning to refrain from fishing and navigation activities around other sea areas around Sri Lanka has been lifted. Light rain conditions are likely to occur in the Southwestern part of the country during the first few days of next week, with the prevailing southwestern wind, and light rain conditions are likely to occur in the Northern, Eastern and Uva provinces with the prevailing northeastern and eastern wind during the last few days of the week.
The Meteorological Department is currently paying close attention to whether there will be any increase in rainfall in the island due to a change in the wind flow coming from the east towards the end of the first week of December.
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Conclusion :
Our investigation shows that the social media posts circulating stating that another cyclone could occur in the upcoming days are misleading.
Deputy Director General of the Department of Meteorology, Ms Anusha Warnasuriya, has confirmed that no severe cyclone conditions are expected in the next few days. However, as November and December are periods when Sri Lanka can be affected by cyclones, the Meteorological Department is constantly monitoring the situation and advises people to refer to their official department’s website and social media for official notifications.
Title:A misleading post stating another Cyclone is occurring!
Fact Check By: Fact Crescendo TeamResult: Misleading
