Pakistan on Monday started evacuating thousands of people from the low-lying coastal areas in the southern Sindh province as the fast-approaching severe Cyclone Biparjoy is likely to hit the coastline later this week.
All concerned authorities have been put on high alert after Cyclone Biparjoy, located over the Arabian Sea, turned into an extremely severe cyclonic storm on Sunday.
Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah conducted an aerial inspection of the coastline and asked authorities to evacuate an estimated 80,000 people to safety as Pakistan Meteorological Department said the cyclone came roughly 600 kilometres within the range of Karachi on Monday.
Shah was informed that Biparjoy - which means disaster or calamity in the Bengali language - will hit the coast of Sindh on June 15, but its intensity will subside by June 17 to 18. The first severe cyclone of this year is likely to hit Pakistan as the cash-strapped country is yet to recover fully from the unprecedented floods last year.
Karachi’s Seaview Road was blocked for traffic on Monday to prevent people from heading out into the open sea as BiparÂjoy was classified as an “extrÂemely severe cyclonic storm”. Section 144 has been enforced in Karachi, and entry to the port city’s beaches is banned.
The residents of the Defence Housing Authority (DHA), one of the upscale areas in Karachi, have been advised to take precautionary measures as Biparjoy moves closer to the metropolis.
A top official of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said that the authorities have started moving people from the low-lying coastal areas in Sindh to temporary shelters in government schools and offices as the cyclone is expected to make its landfall in Keti Bandar and its adjoining areas. Keti Bandar is one of the oldest ports in Sindh.