Ahmedabad: Cyclone Biparjoy began its landfall on the Gujarat coast Thursday evening gushing through the coastal belts with gusty winds and heavy rain, uprooting trees and throwing life completely out of gear in the western state.
The cyclone has been churning across the Arabian Sea for over 10 days giving crucial time to the state and central government agencies and armed forces to set up a multi-agency response system for relief and rescue efforts in which about one lakh people were moved to safer places in Gujarat. Landfall indicates a cyclonic storm moving over land after being over water.
Strong winds and heavy rains battered Kutch and Saurashtra coasts as hundreds of personnel from disaster management agencies and other departments remained on high alert for relief and rescue operations, while three persons were injured in Devbhoomi Dwarka district after a tree fell on them.
Speaking to the media persons on Thursday evening over Cyclone Biparjoy, Indian Metrological Department DG Mrityunjay Mohapatra said that the landfall will continue from 6 pm onwards till midnight. "Dense convective clouds have entered Kutch and Devbhumi Dwarka districts and therefore, the landfall process has commenced. It will continue until midnight," IMD Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said in New Delhi.
Furthermore, he added that all districts adjoining the Gulf of Kutch like Porbandar, Jamnagar, Rajkot and Devbhoomi Dwarka will see the maximum impact of the cyclone. The latest circulated IMD bulletin said wind speed is expected to gust up a maximum sustained wind speed ranging from 80-100 kmph.
The eye of the cyclone is around 50 km in diameter. It will take around five hours for the wall cloud and the eye to completely cross into the land, Mohapatra said. The cyclone will bring extremely heavy rainfall in Kutch, Devbhumi Dwarka and Jamnagar, with wind speeds remaining high even on Friday despite a reduction in intensity, IMD Ahmedabad director Manorama Mohanty said. Ahead of the landfall, several parts of Kutch, Jamnagar, Rajkot, Porbandar, Devbhumi Dwarka and Amreli received heavy rainfall ranging from 10-20 millimetres in six hours till Thursday noon.
Nearly one lakh people living in eight coastal districts have been shifted to temporary shelters in Gujarat as a precautionary measure. "Of 94,427 persons evacuated so far, 46,800 were evacuated in Kutch district, followed by 10,749 in Devbhumi Dwarka, 9,942 in Jamnagar, 9,243 in Morbi, 6,822 in Rajkot, 4,864 in Junagadh, 4,379 in Porbandar and 1,605 in Gir Somnath district," a state government release said.
Trees, electricity poles uprooted along Gujarat coast: At least three people were injured in incidents of treefall in Gujarat's Devbhoomi Dwarka district as cyclone Biparjoy made landfall with destructive wind speed and incessant rains on Kutch coast on Thursday evening. Many trees and electricity poles were uprooted near Jakhau and Mandvi towns in Kutch district while tin sheets used in house construction were blown away.
As per the inputs from the ground, several cattle died in Kutch, Bhuj due to electrocution and Gandhidham areas, most of them due to electrocution and falling of over 100 trees. Nearly 200 electricity poles collapsed in Bhuj, Nakhtrana, and Abdasa area of Kutch.
Until 7 pm there had been no report of death, said Gujarat Minister of State for Home Harsh Sanghavi. "Three persons have sustained injuries in Devbhoomi Dwarka district due to treefall and are being treated. Teams of Gujarat police, NDRF and Army are working in different parts of Dwarka to remove uprooted trees and electricity poles," he added.
Officials said the cyclone will cause total destruction of thatched houses and extensive damage to 'kachcha' houses, and some damage to pucca homes. It will also cause uprooting of power and communication poles, damage and flood approach roads, with district authorities making extensive preparations to ensure there is no disruption in power and water supplies, they added.
15 ships, 7 aircraft on standby, says India Coast Guard: Indian Coast Guard, which is working overtime to ensure the safety of the people of Gujarat in the wake of Cyclone Biparjoy, spoke about its rescue efforts.
“We have kept around 15 ships and 7 aircraft on standby. We have also kept four special Dornier and three helicopters at Coast Guard Station in Daman. We will deploy them if necessary," says Inspector General AK Harbola, Commander, Indian Coast Guard, Region (North West).
He said coastal guards have been deployed extensively to maintain safety in coordination with many stakeholders as coastal Gujarat braces for Cyclone Biparjoy. Indian Coast Guard DIG Mukund Gurjar told news agency ANI also spoke about his unit's enhanced efforts along the coastal belts of Gujarat. “With the first sign of weather disturbance, we started all these PMT measures on 3rd June, today on 15th June but there were indications that weather may deteriorate from 5th June onwards...our remote operating stations were manned 24*7 besides the Maritime rescue coordination centres. All these centres guided the dense merchant and fishing traffic to safety in coordination with many stakeholders …” Gurjar said.
Army deploys 27 relief columns: The Army has deployed 27 relief columns in Bhuj, Jamnagar, Gandhidham, Dhrangadhra as well as forward locations at Naliya, Dwarka and Mandvi. The Air Force has kept one helicopter each on standby at Vadodara, Ahmedabad and Delhi. The Navy has positioned 10-15 teams, each consisting of five diverse and good swimmers, at Okha, Porbandar and Bakasura for rescue and relief.
The Indian Air Force assets are in operational readiness for relief and rescue work that would follow the landfall of cyclone 'Biparjoy', the IAF said. "#IAF assets in Op readiness for relief and rescue operations that would follow the landfall of #Cyclonebiparjoy. IAF is committed to assist fellow citizens to tackle contingencies that arise due to the cyclone," the IAF tweeted.
Biparjoy, the first cyclone in the Arabian Sea this year, rapidly underwent rapid intensification on June 6 and June 7, escalating from just a cyclonic circulation to a very severe cyclonic storm in just 48 hours, defying earlier predictions. It has also sustained its strength for a longer-than-normal duration, which meteorologists attribute to due to an unusually warm Arabian Sea.
The IMD data shows Biparjoy has become the cyclone with the longest lifespan in the Arabian Sea. The life period of Biparjoy, which developed over the southeast Arabian Sea at 5.30 am on June 6, is about 10 days and 12 hours so far. The extremely severe Cyclone Kyarr of 2019 over the Arabian Sea had a life of 9 days and 15 hours.
