Nearly 74,000 people have been shifted to shelters from Gujarat's coastal region ahead of cyclone Biparjoy's expected landfall in Kutch district on Thursday evening, 15 June.
While orange and yellow alert have been issued in several districts of the state, the cyclone is currently around 220 km off the coast of Gujarat. It will cross Saurashtra and Kutch and adjoining Pakistan coasts between Mandvi and Karachi near Jakhau Port between 4-8 PM, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
Classified as a "very severe cyclonic storm" of category 3, the cyclone is likely to carry a maximum wind speed of up to 140-150 kmph, IMD noted.
Mangaluru: High tides crash at the damaged houses due to sea erosion, at Bettampady, ahead of Cyclone Biparjoy, on the outskirts of Mangaluru, Wednesday, 14 June.
(Photo: PTI)
Meanwhile, DK Singh, Director, Jamnagar Airport, said, "Preparations have been completed at Jamnagar airport to deal with cyclone Biparjoy. Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) issued till 16th June - the movement of all flights will be suspended from 1:30 pm to 4 pm. Diesel and petrol required to operate the airport in case of emergency have also been stored. There is no aircraft in the parking area at the airport now."
Areas such as Porbandar, Rajkot, Morbi, Junagadh and the remaining districts of Saurashtra and North Gujarat region are likely to receive heavy to extremely heavy rain, as per IMD.
Meanwhile, 18 teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), 12 teams of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), 115 teams of state road and building department, and 397 teams of the state electricity department have been deployed in different coastal districts of the state.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had tweeted on Wednesday that he spoke to all three service chiefs and reviewed the preparedness of the armed forces for the landfall of cyclone Biparjoy.
The Western Railway had also announced the cancellation of 76 trains as a precautionary measure to ensure the safety of passengers and train operations.
As of Thursday morning, high tidal waves have hit Gujarat as cyclone Biporjoy intensifies.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)