New Delhi, June 15: Cyclone Vayu that skirted the Saurashtra coast in Gujarat and was moving away has again changed its path, said an official of the Ministry of Earth Sciences on Friday. Cyclone Vayu is likely to move nearly westwards during the next 48 hours and may hit Gujarat's Kutch on June 17-18 as a cyclonic storm or a deep depression, said the official. Gujarat has been on high alert since the prediction of landfall by Cyclone Vayu.

“Cyclone Vayu will again recurve. It is likely to hit the Kutch coast on June 17-18,” M Rajeevan, ministry of earth sciences secretary, was quoted by news agency PTI as saying. Vayu may turn into a cyclonic storm by June 16 with an expected wind speed of 80-90 kilometres per hour, he said. The Gujarat government has been informed about the change in the path of Cyclone Vayu, Rajeevan added. Power Generation Affected in Gujarat Due to Cyclone Vayu.

According to a senior official of the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Cyclone Vayu is very likely to move nearly westwards during the next 48 hours and recurve northeastwards thereafter. The very severe cyclonic storm will also reduce in intensity and turn into a severe cyclonic storm by Saturday morning, he added. Cyclone Vayu Delays Monsoon in Mumbai by 7 Days, Says IMD.

“The system is moving nearly westwards affecting Porbandar, Devbhoomi Dwarka districts with wind speed of 50-60 kilometres per hour gusting to 70 kilometres per hour and Gir Somnath and Junagarh districts with wind speed of 30-40 kilometres per hour gusting to 50 kilometres per hour. The wind speed over these districts is very likely to decrease gradually,” the Cyclone Warning Division said in its bulletin at 5.30 pm.

Cyclone Vayu was to hit the Gujarat coast on Thursday, but it changed course on the intervening night of Wednesday and Thursday. It skirted the Gujarat coast, affecting Gir, Somnath, Diu, Junagarh and Porbandar.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 15, 2019 12:04 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).