Evacuation in focus as cyclone Biparjoy nears, NDRF heads to Gujarat

Over 35,000 people from coastal areas in Gujarat have been evacuated and moved to makeshift relief centres ahead of cyclone Biparjoy, which is expected to cause extensive damage when it makes landfall near Jakhau port in Kutch district on Thursday, officials said on Tuesday.

Seventeen teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and 12 teams of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) are on standby for rescue operations, as the state recorded four deaths in a span of 24 hours because of pre-cyclonic rains and strong winds, the officials added.

Government schools in eight districts of Kutch, Porbandar, Junagadh, Jamnagar, Devbhoomi-Dwarka, Gir-Somnath, Morbi and Rajkot, where heavy rainfall is predicted, were declared shut till Friday and prohibitory orders under section 144 of CrPC, which bans gathering of five or more people, have been imposed in Kutch till June 16. Fishermen were strongly advised against venturing into the Arabian Sea, officials said.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Biparjoy is likely to cross Saurashtra, Kutch and the adjoining Pakistan coast between Mandvi (Gujarat) and Karachi (Pakistan) near Jakhau Port (Gujarat) around Thursday evening, with winds of 125-135 kmph, gusting to 150 kmph.

Biparjoy developed as a depression over southeast Arabian Sea at 5.30am on June 6, and intensified into an extremely severe cyclonic storm by June 11. As it barrelled up the Arabian Sea on Tuesday, it lost some of its intensity and dropped one rung to become a very severe cyclone, with winds gusting up to 185 kmph. But experts warned that it could pick up pace again and cause colossal devastation in Gujarat by triggering gigantic storm surges.

“The cyclonic storm will have maximum sustained wind speed of 125-135 kmph, gusting to 150 kmph. The state is expected to get heavy to very heavy rainfall in these areas from June 12 to June 16,” IMD Ahmedabad director Manorama Mohanty said.

Earlier in the day, Union home minister Amit Shah chaired a high-level meeting in Delhi to discuss the situation. The meeting was also attended by Gujarat chief minister Bhupendra Patel.

Relief commissioner Alok Kumar Pandey said the government is focusing on evacuating the people to safer areas, and ensuring minimum loss of life and damage to property.

“As a result, 37,794 people have been evacuated to secure areas in various districts of Gujarat. The evacuations took place in the eight districts,” the official said.

IMD has predicted heavy rain in these eight districts on Wednesday and Thursday.

Pandey said that more evacuations will be held in the coastal areas in the next 24 hours. There are enough makeshift relief centres, including government buildings, with vital facilities such as water, food and medicine available for those who have been shifted, he said.

All hospitals, both private and public, and health centres in areas which are likely to be affected by the storm have adequate medical staff and proper stock of medicines, Pandey said. “The state government is in constant touch with the district administration for providing immediate and necessary assistance during rescue operations,” he added.

Officials linked to the preparations said over 40,000 food packets, 2,000 kgs of milk powder and 45,000 tetrapacks of milk have been prepared to delivered to those who are likely to be affected.

According to NDRF officials, their teams will be stationed along the coastline in Kutch, Dwarka and Jamnagar. Armed with satellite phones, VHF sets, inflatable rubber boats, and tree cutters, these teams will help clear roads and rescue those trapped. Each team will also comprise senior officers of the rank of deputy commandant or assistant commandant, the officials said.

“We did not want to send teams at the last minute, so all our teams reached the state by road. The teams are a mix of experienced and new rescuers. The experienced are those who have worked in floods or similar natural calamities before. We are working with the state authorities and posting the rescuers in places where the cyclone may have its biggest impact,” NDRF director general Atul Karwal said.

Officials aware of the matter said the teams selected to work in the state are a mix of young rescuers. While some are from Maharashtra, who have handled floods in the state, others are those who worked during the floods in Jodhpur last year.

In a statement, the army said that flood relief columns have been kept ready in Bhuj, Jamnagar, Gandhidham, Dharangdhra, Vadodara and Gandhinagar as well as forward locations in Naliya, Dwarka and Amreli. “The army authorities have also jointly planned the relief operations with civil administration as well as NDRF,” the statement said.

The road building Department said it has formed 115 teams which will be deployed with 167 JCBs and 230 dumpers. The power department said it has kept a total of 889 teams on stand-by, including 597 in the above eight districts, and will ensure that power supply from 6,950 feeders is not affected.

The measures came as four people died in separate instances caused by the impending cyclone. Government officials and police said that on Tuesday, a migrant labourer from Madhya Pradesh died and her son was injured after a chimney at a ceramic factory in Morbi district collapsed due to heavy rains.

On Monday, two minor siblings, aged 4 and 6, died in an incident of wall collapse caused by heavy downpour in Bhuj.

In Porbandar, a 50-year-old man died after his house in Kharwavad area collapsed during the rains. “The area registered heavy downpour and strong winds between 4am and 4.30am, which weakened the structure of the house. The man succumbed to injuries in a hospital,” Porbandar superintendent of police Neelam Goswami said.

The government has closed nine ports, including the Adani Group’s Mundra port, in Kutch.

Privately owned captive ports in Vadinar, operated by Nayara Energy, and Sikka, managed by Reliance Industries Ltd, have also suspended activities in view of the cyclone, officials said.