Global InformationCyclone Lehar information
 Cyclone Lehar near peak intensity on 26 November | |
| Meteorological history | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 19 November 2013 |
| Dissipated | 28 November 2013 |
| Very severe cyclonic storm | |
| 3-minute sustained (IMD) | |
| Highest winds | 140 km/h (85 mph) |
| Lowest pressure | 980 hPa (mbar); 28.94 inHg |
| Category 1-equivalent tropical cyclone | |
| 1-minute sustained (SSHWS/JTWC) | |
| Highest winds | 140 km/h (85 mph) |
| Lowest pressure | 967 hPa (mbar); 28.56 inHg |
| Overall effects | |
| Fatalities | None |
| Damage | Minimal |
| Areas affected | Thailand, Malaysia, Malay Peninsula, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Southern India |
| IBTrACS | |
Part of the 2013 Pacific typhoon and the North Indian Ocean cyclone seasons | |
Very Severe Cyclonic Storm Lehar[nb 1] was a tropical cyclone that primarily affected the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Lehar was the second most intense tropical cyclone of the 2013 season, surpassed by Cyclone Phailin, as well as one of the two relatively strong cyclones that affected Southern India in November 2013, the other being Cyclone Helen.
The origins of Lehar can be tracked back to an area of low pressure that formed in the South China Sea on 18 November. The system slowly drifted westwards and entered the Bay of Bengal, where it quickly consolidated into a depression on 23 November. It moved west-northwest into an improving environment for further development before the system was named Lehar on 24 November, after it had developed into a cyclonic storm and passed over the Andaman and Nicobar Islands into the Bay of Bengal. Lehar gradually intensified further into a very severe cyclonic storm, equivalent to a category 1 hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale (SSHWS), reaching its peak on 26 November, with 3-minute sustained wind speeds of 140 km/h (87 mph) and a minimum central pressure of 982 mbar (29.0 inHg).
Moving along a generally west-northwestward path in the following days, the storm passed over an area having cooler waters and a moderate vertical wind shear. The storm's low-level circulation center (LLCC) started losing its structure, triggering a weakening trend. Lehar rapidly weakened to a Depression on 28 November and its fully exposed LLCC made its second landfall over the coast of Andhra Pradesh near Machilipatnam. The same day, it was last noted as a well marked low-pressure area over Andhra Pradesh.
Extensive preparation was done in the wake of the storm by the authorities of the coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, including the evacuation of 45,000 people in low-lying areas. The storm's rapid weakening before landfall led to no reported fatalities and minimal damage.
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