Karachi: Cyclone Biparjoy which is expected to make landfall today evening between Keti Bandar in Sindh and Kutch in Indian Gujarat  moved closer to Pakistan’s coast and was at a distance of about 310km from Karachi yesterday night after it made a turn northeastward, staying on its projected path.

The latest alert issued by the Pakistan Meteorological Department around 9:30pm yesterday said the cyclone was at a distance of about 310km south of Karachi, 300km south-southwest of Thatta and 240km south-southwest of Keti Bandar.

“Maximum sustained surface winds are 150-160km/hour, gusts 180km/hour around the system centre and sea conditions being phenomenal around the system centre with maximum wave height [of] 30 feet,” the alert said.

It added that under the existing upper-level steering winds, the “very severe cyclonic storm” was likely to keep tracking north-northeastward and was expected cross between Keti Bandar and the Indian Gujarat coast in the evening on June 15, packing winds of 100-120km/h.

Energy Minister Khurram Dastgir alerted citizens about a “temporary decline in RLNG-based (Re-Gasified Liquefied Natural Gas-based) electricity generation and temporary increase in load-shedding” due to the cyclone disrupting RLNG shipping to Pakistan.

According to the PMD, cyclone Biparjoy – the name means ‘disaster’ in Bengali language – has reached within the distance of 300kms in south-southwest of Thatta, 240kms south-southwest of Keti Bandar and 280km from India’s Jakhau port.

Published in The Daily National Courier, June, 15 2023

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