Cyclone Biparjoy has slowed down, will not make landfall before nightfall: Pakistan minister

Islamabad [Pakistan], June 15 : Pakistan Minister for Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Sherry Rehman on Thursday said Cyclone Biparjoy has "slowed down" and will not make landfall before nightfall now, the Geo News reported.

Geo News is a Pakistani news channel.

It was previously forecast that the cyclone would hit the shore around the evening.

The climate minister, however, warned that while the cyclone had "slowed down", its core was still "intense".

Taking to Twitter, she wrote: "ALERT #CycloneBiperjoy has slowed down but the core remains intense. It will not make landfall before nightfall now. More information will be shared soon from @ndmapk."

As both India and Pakistan gear up for the impact of the cyclone, which could devastate homes and tear down power lines, authorities in both countries are on high alert, prompting authorities to evacuate over 100,000 people in both nations, as per Geo News.

Pakistan's National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said that the cyclone, classified as a very severe cyclonic storm, has moved north-northeastward during the last 6 hours and now lies at a distance of about 230 kilometres south of Karachi, 235 kilometres south of Thatta, and 155 kilometres south-southwest of Keti Bandar.

As winds are expected to blow at 160 kilometres per hour, sea conditions around the system centre are phenomenal, with a maximum wave height of 30 feet, the disaster management authority said.

The NDMA mentioned that when the cyclone hits Keti Bandar in southeast Sindh, it will pack winds of 100-120 kilometres per hour, gusting 140 kilometres per hour.