Cyclone Biparjoy highlights | 'Fought calamity without casualty,' Gujarat CM lauds emergency response

Cyclone Biparjoy, which ripped through Kutch and parts of Saurashtra region of Gujarat, has left a trail of destruction as gusty winds and rains wreaked havoc, officials said. 

Heavy rains lashed the entire Kutch district since the cyclone started making landfall near Jakhau Port from 6.30 pm on Thursday and the process continued till 2.30 am, an official said. Biparjoy (meaning disaster or calamity in Bengali) unleashed destructive wind speeds of up to 140 kmph and incessant rains as trees and electricity poles were uprooted, while seawater entered villages located in low-lying areas. 

"Forty-five villages in Naliya tehsil of Kutch district plunged into darkness after electricity cables were snapped and poles got uprooted due to the cyclone," the official said. After the landfall process got over, the intensity of the cyclone reduced from 'very severe' to 'severe' category.

(PTI)

Gujarat Health Minister Rushikesh Patel said on Friday, “There is no report of loss of human lives in the Kachchh district, till now. Currently, Mundra, Jakhua, Koteshwar, Lakphat and Naliya are witnessing high windspeed and rainfall. Rainfall is also expected in parts of south Rajasthan due to the cyclone Biparjoy. Road clearance work is underway in many parts of the coastal districts.”

23 people were injured and 24 animals died due to cyclone 'Biparjoy' in Gujarat. 2 human lives were lost before the cyclone made landfall, says NDRF

People wait in the rain for their turn to receive free food distributed by volunteers outside a camp of internally displaced people from coastal areas in Sujawal, Pakistan's southern district in the Sindh province, Thursday, June 15, 2023, as Cyclone Biparjoy was approaching. A vast swath of western India and neighboring southern Pakistan that suffered deadly floods last year are bracing for a new deluge as fast-approaching Cyclone Biparjoy whirls toward landfall Thursday. 

(AP)

Heavy rainfall, triggered by Cyclone Biparjoy, continues to lash Mandvi in Gujarat.

(PTI)

Roofs were blown off houses and trees and electric poles uprooted in several parts of India's western state of Gujarat as a severe cyclone made landfall overnight and heavy rain continued to lash the coast early on Friday.

No casualties were reported.

More than 180,000 people were evacuated in India and Pakistan in the last few days as authorities braced for the cyclone, named Biparjoy, to hit coasts in both countries.

Biparjoy, which means 'disaster' or 'calamity' in the Bengali language, made landfall near Jakhau, a port in Gujarat that is close to the border with Pakistan, weather officials said.

Reuters

India Meteorological Department said on Friday, “SCS BIPARJOY at 0530IST of today over Saurashtra & Kutch, lat 23.6N & long 69.2E, about 70km ENE of Jakhau Port (Gujarat), 50km NE of Naliya. Likely to weaken gradually into a CS over Saurashtra & Kutch around noon and subsequently into a DD around evening of 16th June.”

Kutch witnessed the effect of Cyclone Biporjoy as strong wind blew and several trees were uprooted.

Heavy rains and gusty winds at a speed of over 115-120 kilometres per hour created havoc in Gujarat's Morbi district, damaging over 300 electric poles, leading to power outage in around 45 villages, after Cyclone Biparjoy made landfall in coastal areas of the state on Thursday evening.

Officials with the Paschim Gujarat Vij Company Limited (PGVCL) said that efforts are underway to restore power in nine of the affected villages.

"Strong winds broke electric wires and poles, causing a power outage in 45 villages of Maliya tehsil. We are restoring power in 9 villages and power has been restored in the remaining villages," PGVCL's executive engineer, Morbi, JC Goswami told ANI.

(ANI)

Rough sea conditions witnessed at Gomti Ghat as an impact of 'Cyclone Biparjoy'. 

(ANI)

The effect of Cyclone 'Biparjoy' has also been seen in Mumbai. High waves are rising in the sea across Gateway of India.

Mandvi witnesses strong winds as an impact of cyclone 'Biparjoy'

Wind-driven rain pelted the shores of western India and southern Pakistan as Cyclone Biparjoy pushed into the coast with the potential for a significant storm surge and flash floods from heavy rain.

The two nations had moved 173,000 people to shelters ahead of the cyclone, and preparations were made to provide water and maintain communications after the storm passed. Pakistan's southern province in Sindh, devastated by floods last summer, lies in the cyclone's path.

During the day Thursday, skies darkened along the Arabian Sea, while dust storms hampered evacuation and rescue work on land. Biparjoy had maximum sustained winds of 120 kph (75 mph) with gusts up to 140 kph (86 mph) and was forecast to weaken as it moved into India’s Gujarat state.

(AP)

Cyclone Bipajoy leaves trees uprooted and properties damaged in Naliya as strong winds continue after Cyclone 'Biparjoy' made a landfall on Thursday night. 

As Cyclone Biparjoy's begins landfall, government has enabled mobile service portability for affected districts. Users can manually switch to any other telecom operator to stay connected if there is no service or there is a temporary disruption in the subscribed network.

"In case your subscribed Telecom services are down, you can now utilize any Telecom operator's network," tweeted Licensed Service Areas (LSA) - Gujarat, which falls under the Department of Telecommunications.

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Cyclone Biparjoy was one of the longest living cyclones ever recorded in the Arabian Sea. Biparjoy brewed in the sea for nine days.

Trees and electricity poles were uprooted as cyclone Biparjoy made landfall in Gujarat’s Kutch district, bringing winds sustaining at 115-125k/hr as thousands of rescue workers stood by while close to 100,000 residents were already moved out of their homes.

A system roughly 300km wide, with the eye of the storm alone spread across a 50km diameter, Biparjoy brought with it storm surges 2-3m high and winds that gusted up to 140k/hr. The storm was expected to sustain at the “very severe cyclone” strength till landfall was complete, which was expected by midnight on Thursday.

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Destructive cyclone Biparjoy, which packed high wind speeds and brought heavy rain, caused complete disruption of life in Gujarat's Kutch district on Thursday as trees were uprooted in large numbers, power failure was reported in many areas, but it began weakening in the early hours of Friday as it moved north. At least 22 people were also injured as the 'very severe' cyclonic storm made landfall in Gujarat's coastal areas on Thursday evening.

Cyclone Biparjoy lay centred over the Saurashtra-Kutch region, 30 km north of Naliya till 2.30am. It was expected to move northeastwards and weaken into a cyclonic storm by early morning on Friday, and into a depression by the same evening over south Rajasthan, the India Meteorological Department or IMD said.

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Relief Commissioner of Gujarat Alok Pandey said on Thursday, “The eye of the storm is currently near the Pakistan-Kutch border. The wind had an average speed of 78 kmph. There are chances of power outages. As per IMD's forecast, the storm will reach southern Rajasthan tomorrow.”

ANI

Thousands of rescue workers, essential services staff and military personnel waited late on Thursday for the storm to pass so in order to begin rehabilitation work, as experts and officials feared significant damage to infrastructure after cyclone Biparjoy battered Kutch and Saurashtra with winds as strong as 140k/hr.

In all, over 94,000 people were evacuated within Gujarat, which has a coastline stretching over 1,600km. Some of the evacuees were taken from vulnerable settlements to further inland, where they were housed in government facilities.

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Biparjoy, the ‘very severe cyclonic storm’, which hit the state of Gujarat on Thursday evening, prompted authorities to remain on high alert and ensure preparedness in the face of any adversaries, as the cyclone is expected to cause heavy damage and destruction. Consequently, the Railways updated its list of cancelled and diverted trains in the wake of anticipated threat to life and property, taking the total cancelled train to 99 up from earlier count of 76.

A notification from the transport body read, “The Western Railway has further decided to cancel, partially cancel the operation of few more trains as a precautionary measure in the cyclone prone areas over Western Railway…Refund will be admissible as per extant rules."

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PGVCL Morbi Executive Engineer J. C. Goswami said on Thursday after Biparjoy made a landfall, “Strong winds broke electric wires and poles, causing a power outage in 45 villages of Maliya tehsil. We are restoring power in 9 villages & power has been restored in the remaining villages.”