Cyclone Vayu has been upgraded to a category on a cyclone with rain and thunderstorm expected in Badin, Thatta and Tharparkar districts of Sindh. According to the Pakistan Meteorological Department, “Tropical cyclone Vayu in the East Arabian Sea has intensified as ‘very severe cyclonic storm’ and moved further north-northwestward during last six hours, now lay centered around Lat.18.N and Long.70.0E at 0800PST at a distance of about 725 km southeast of Karachi.
The maximum sustained surface winds are 135-145 km/hour gusting to 160 km/hour around the system center.”
The MET office further said, “Vayu is likely to continue to move in northerly direction. Under the influence of this system, widespread dust and thundershowers with scattered heavy to very heavy falls are expected in southeast Sindh (Thatta, Badin and Tharparkar districts) today and on Friday. While scattered/isolated Dust-thundershowers may occur in rest of Sindh during the period.”
Sea breeze is likely to remain cutoff on Thursday and Friday (June 13-14) which can lead to heat wave like conditions in coastal areas of Sindh including Karachi, the MET office added.
India has named it Vayu. The advisory also stated that it was unlikely that the cyclone would lead to any rainfall in Karachi but added that it can possibly cause a heat wave which has begun today and last till Saturday.
The direction of winds will change and the winds blowing from the sea will be suspended.
