Kolkata, May 3 (TIWN / IANS) As the severe cyclonic storm Fani made landfall in neighbouring Odisha, heavy rainfall lashed Kolkata and Gangetic West Bengal on Friday.

"The outer ring cloud band has already reached the coastal areas of West Bengal and Kolkata, prompting rainfall. The rain intensity will be gradually increasing. As the cyclone comes closer to Bengal it will have a speed of 80-100 kmph," weatherman J. K. Mukhopadhyay said.

In order to tackle any emergency situation, six teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been deployed in Jhargram district's Sankrail, West Medinipur's Narayangarh Block, in Ramnagar of EAst Medinipur district, Kakdwip in South 24 Parganas, Dhamakhali and Hasnabad of North 24 Parganas district.

According to the Met Office, the entire process of the cyclone entering into the land was completed by 11 a.m.

"It crossed Odisha coast between Gopalpur and Chandbali close to Puri with a maximum sustained wind speed of 170-180 kmph gusting to 200 kmph," it said.