Karachi: People in Sindh’s coastal city of Keti, who had to leave because of a cyclone danger and a warning of monsoon rains, are now going back home on Friday. It is after the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) said that cyclone Biparjoy has weakened.
In its most recent update, the Met Office said, “The Very Severe Cyclonic Storm (VSCS) BIPARJOY has become a Severe Cyclonic Storm (SCS) over the northeast Arabian Sea after crossing the Indian Gujarat coast (near Jakhau port).”
As a strong cyclone hit land and rain pounded both the Indian and Pakistani coasts late Thursday, roofs blown off of homes and trees and electric poles uprooted. This left thousands of people without power.
At least two people died in the western Indian state of Gujarat when flood waters carried them away just before the storm hit. But the cyclone didn’t do much damage in Pakistan. There was rain in some parts of the southern city of Karachi, which is on high watch.
In the last few days, more than 180,000 people in India and Pakistan had to leave their homes because of a storm called Biparjoy, which in the Bengali language means “disaster” or “calamity.”
The current PMD report said that the cyclone is about 110 km south of Badin, 200 km southeast of Keti Bandar, and 180 km southeast of Thatta. It is near latitude 23.8°N and longitude 69.4°E.
“The highest sustained surface winds are between 80 and 100 km/h, and the waves in the northeast Arabian Sea are between 10 and 12 feet high. By tonight, the system is likely to be even weaker and be in a Depression.
