Orange alert in northern and central Maldives, as strong winds trigger 10ft waves

Maldives Meteorological Service has issued an orange alert for northern and central Maldives, with strong winds expected to trigger waves of up to 10 feet.

The national weather agency has issued orange alerts for the last two days straight, as the country experiences intense monsoon rains.

The latest orange alert was issued for parts of northern and central Maldives, from HA. Atoll to V. Atoll, from 11:15 am to 03:15 pm on Thursday.

The weather agency forecasts squally showers for the region, with strong winds of 34-40 miles per hour and gusts of 60 miles per hour.

Seas are expected to be very rough, with waves of 8-10 feet in northern and central areas, and waves of four feet in the south.

Maldives Meteorological Service expects the bad weather conditions to prevail across the country over the next 24 hours, with the conditions especially unfavorable in northern and central areas – where an orange alert – the third highest level of weather warning – has been in place since Wednesday.

Amid the intense monsoon rains, the police have urged the public against all non-essential travel. The agency also advised the public against going to picnics in uninhabited islands and going swimming.

The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said on Wednesday that it had received reports of 12 weather-related incidents across the country over the last two weeks. The most common incidents were cases of strong winds ripping roofs off homes and uprooting trees, followed by flooding.