Police arrest 17 for visiting Karachi beaches amid cyclone Biparjoy threat
Pakistan
The cyclone is hardly 300 kilometres away from Sindh's port Keti Bandar, says NDMA
KARACHI (Web Des) – Police have arrested 17 people for visiting the coastal locations in Karachi despite imposition of Section 144 amid threats of tropical cyclone Biparjoy.
Earlier this week, a ban was imposed by the commissioner barring the citizens from visiting the beaches as a preventive measure in light of the alerts issued by the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) in this regard.
Police said cases had been registered against all the 17 people for defying the Section 144. They would be presented before a court for further legal proceedings.
Meanwhile, authorities have vacated 36 buildings, which are declared dangerous, in north region while shops in these buildings have been sealed. The deputy commissioner north has also sealed all restaurants located on beaches.
The authorities have also set up shelter houses in Aram Bagh, Saddar, Lyari, Civil Line sub-divisions as mass evacuation has been started from the coastal areas. Furthermore, a contingency plan has been prepared to handle any untoward situation.
With bit less intensity the tropical cyclone -- Biparjoy -- is hardly 300 kilometres away from Sindh's port Keti Bandar, the National Disaster Management Authority said in its latest update on Wednesday.
The tropical cyclone is expected to maintain a northward trajectory until Wednesday morning and then it is likely to recurve eastward and will make a landfall between Keti Bandar (Southeast Sindh Coastline) and the Indian Gujarat Coastline in the afternoon of Thursday (June 15), as a Very Severe Cyclonic Storm (VSCS).
According to the latest NDMA forecast, tropical cyclone has weakened into a "Very Severe Cyclonic Storm" (VSCS) -- Category 3, with sustained windspeeds of approximately 140-150 km/h and gusts up to 170 km/h.
On Wednesday morning, Biparjoy was located in the Arabian Sea near Latitude 21.2° N and Longitude 66.6° E, roughly 380 km south of Karachi and 390 km south of Thatta.
The areas likely to be affected by Cyclone Biparjoy include Thatta, Badin, Sajawal, Tharparkar, Karachi, Mirpurkhas, Umerkot, Hyderabad, Ormara, Tando Allah Yar and Tando Mohammad Khan.
