Residents of Badin and Sujawal who had been evacuated to relief camps ahead of the arrival of Cyclone Biparjoy have started returning to their homes following a weakening of the storm and its landfall in India’s Gujarat.
In a statement, Badin Deputy Commissioner Agha Shahnawaz said fishermen who had been shifted to evacuation camps had been allowed to return home from today (Friday) as the storm had largely subsided in the area. However, he added, some rainfall was expected in the district over the next 24 hours.
Separately, Sujawal Deputy Commissioner Imtiaz Abro said light rainfall and winds were persisting in the area but the threat posed by the storm had ended. He said at-risk residents who had been evacuated to relief camps would start returning to their homes from tomorrow (Saturday). He also clarified that authorities would begin assessing damage done by last night’s heavy rainfall and winds.
Overall, the Sindh government had evacuated over 65,000 people from various at-risk districts ahead of Biparjoy’s landfall, which had initially been projected to occur near Keti Bandar. However, the storm’s trajectory veered north-eastward, landing in India’s Gujarat and largely sparing Pakistan. In a statement, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said the storm would continue to weaken throughout the day. “It is expected to move north-eastward and weaken into a cyclonic storm by the morning of June 16, and further weaken into a depression by the evening of June 16,” it said, adding that the storm remained at a distance of about 255km from Karachi, 165km from Thatta and 125km from Keti Bandar.
As the storm continues to weaken, said the NDMA, thunderstorms with heavy winds would likely continue in Thatta, Sujawal, Badin, Tharparker, Mirpurkhas and Umerkot districts until June 17. Scattered heavy rainfalls were also expected in Karachi, Hyderabad, Tando Muhammad Khan, Tando Allayar, Shaheed Benazirabad and Sanghar districts, it added.
In a statement, Climate Change Minister Sherry Rehman said Pakistan had been prepared for any eventuality but had largely been spared the full force of the cyclone. “Sindh’s coastal areas, like Sujawal, were inundated by high sea levels but most people had been evacuated to safe ground,” she said, and thanked relevant authorities for a “stellar coordination effort.”