Cyclone Vayu is raging its way towards Gujarat’s coastline and is expected to make landfall by Thursday morning here. Its impact, however, is being felt in several other states with coastal areas of Maharashtra especially affected due to rain and high-speed winds.
State administrations have begun preparations in earnest to ensure that locals are aware of do’s and don’ts while those in low-lying areas in coastal parts – specifially in Gujarat – are being taken to safer locations. Here, it is estimated that over three lakh people will be taken to higher grounds and 700 shelter homes have been kept ready. As many as 26 teams of National Disaster Response Force – each with 45 personnel – have been deployed in Gujarat for carrying out relief operations. An additional 10 teams are en route as well. 34 teams of the Indian Army are on standby while the Indian Navy, Coast Guard and Air Force have also been requested to assist if and when needed.
Here are the live and latest updates on Cyclone Vayu:
* Cyclone Vayu around 330 kilometres from Veraval in Gujarat on Wednesday morning. Gujarat state government has asked for 12 additional teams of NDRF – six from Patna and six from Chennai.
* Gujarat Chief Secretary J N Singh expected to call his counterpart in Odisha to learn about how the state dealt with Cyclone Fani in April. (Read all about Cyclone Fani here)
* News agency ANI reports that tourists in Gujarat’s Dwarka, Somnath, Sasan and Kutch are being requested to leave for safer locations.
* IMD and BMC have warned locals in Mumbai to avoid the shoreline here. People are also being asked to exercise maximum caution against potential threats from flying objects. (Read full report here)
* By Wednesday morning, Cyclone Vayu was around 280 kilometres south-southwest of Mumbai. The city has witnessed high-speed winds which led to several trees being uprooted.
* The landfall is expected in Gujarat on Thursday morning.
* Vayu turned into ‘Very Severe Cylonic Storm on Tuesday night’. It is expected to make landfall in Gujarat’s Veraval. (Read full report here)
Source: Zee News