Very Severe Cyclonic Storm ‘Biparjoy’ to batter Gujarat as high-waves warning issued for entire west coast

A joint bulletin issued by IMD and INCOIS warned of damage to houses, roads, power lines, telephone poles, standing crops, plantations, railway network and major flooding of low-lying areasof Devbhumi Dwarka, Porbandar, Jamnagar, Morbi, Junagarh and Rajkot districts of Gujarat.

Heavy rains at Jakhau port ahead of the landfall of Biparjoy cyclone, in Kutch district, on June 12, 2023. | Photo Credit: PTI

Waves rising as high as 9.2 metres, gale force winds which can touch upto 160 kmph, storm surges of upto three metres, and heavy rainfall have been forecast across regions of Gujarat, including Kutch, Devbhumi Dwarka, Porbandar, Jamnagar, Rajkot, Junagarh and Morbi districts, in a joint bulletin issued by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) and India National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) on Tuesday afternoon (June 13).

The Very Severe Cyclonic Storm ‘Biparjoy’ has moved further north-northwestwards at 12 kmph over the past six hours, lying around 280 km southwest of Devbhumi Dwarka.

It is very likely to move further north till midnight, then move north-northeastwards and cross the Saurashtra, Kutch and adjoining Pakistan coasts between Mandvi (Gujarat) and Karachi (Pakistan) near Jakhau Port (Gujarat), around the evening of June 15, as a very severe cyclonic storm with maximum sustained wind speed of 125-135 kmph gusting to 150 kmph.

High wave/ocean state alert/warning information has been issued for Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Lakshadweep. The high waves are likely to vary from five metres across the Maharashtra coast to 3.5 metres across the Karnataka and Kerala coasts.

The bulletin once again warned of damage to houses, roads, power lines, telephone poles, standing crops, plantations, the railway network, and major flooding of low-lying areas in Devbhumi Dwarka, Porbandar, Jamnagar, Morbi, Junagarh and Rajkot districts of Gujarat. Small boats and country crafts may get detached from their moorings and visibility is to be severely affected due to salt spray.

It has recommended avoiding the use of motor boats and small ships movements, preparation for evacuation from coastal areas of Saurashtra and Kutch, judicious regulation of rail and road traffic and advised people in affected areas to remain indoors. Tourism activities should also be restricted over these areas.