Heavy rain and strong winds will occur almost nationwide until September 15 due to whirlwind and strong monsoon winds, announced the Department of Meteorology and Hydrology (DMH) in a special report.

According to the forecast made at 9:30 am on September 12 by the DMH, the whirlwind that occurred in the central and northwestern regions of Myanmar slowly moved west-northwest, and reached lower Sagaing, Magway regions, Chin and Rakhine states.

The whirlwind may continue to move west-northwestward slowly and is expected to reach the coast of Bangladesh and the associated northwestern Bay of Bengal in the next 36 hours. Due to the speed of the whirlwind, monsoon may continue to strengthen in Andaman Sea and Bay of Bengal, according to the DMH.

As a result, heavy rains and thundershowers will be widespread in lower Sagaing, Magway regions, Chin and Rakhine states with likelihood of regionally heavy falls, from fairly widespread to widespread in Nay Pyi Taw, upper Sagaing, Mandalay, Bago, Yangon, Ayeyawady regions, and Kachin, Shan, Kayah, Kayin and Mon states with likelihood of isolated heavy falls and strong winds during September 15, according the special report.

As a result, natural disasters such as strong winds, flash floods and landslides accompanied by heavy rain can occur and those live near the highlands are at risk of landslides and people who live near small rivers and small streams need to be cautious as floods may occur. The DMH has issued a notification in advance and to alert domestic shipping and aviation.