Tropical Cyclone Kyarr downgraded to Category 2 storm

KARACHI/MUSCAT: Tropical Cyclone Kyarr was gradually losing its force, receding from a Category 3 cyclone to Category 2 storm and will further downgrade today, according to media reports.

The Public Authority for Civil Aviation (PACA) Oman in a statement said that “Kyarr has been downgraded to the second degree with wind speeds around the centre between 85 to 95 knots”.

“The tropical cyclone will gradually decrease to the first degree on Wednesday (today),” a news report said.

The United Nations food agency on Tuesday warned against tropical storm to landfall in northern Somalia.

The forecast by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said the tropical storm Kyarr is expected to cause strong winds and some rains across Somalia’s regional states of Puntland and Somaliland in the next 4 to 5 days, says the alert.

The UN food agency said the storm is expected to affect the coastal areas of Puntland in the next 96 hours and spread further inland towards Somaliland and the central areas within 24 hours.

It said strong winds accompanied with light to moderate rains will therefore be experienced in areas situated along the storm path.

Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) earlier on Tuesday said, “The Super Cyclonic Storm over the central Arabian sea has tracked northwestward during last 12 hours and now lay centered at 0800 PST near Lat 19.2°N and Long 63.4°E with maximum sustained surface winds of 230-240 kmph gusting 250kmph, at about 730 km southwest of Karachi, 665 km of Gwadar and 1012 km northeast of Salalah (Oman).”

The super cyclonic storm, Kyarr, poses no direct threat o any coastal area of the country.

Low-lying islands may suffer because of water intrusion due to high tides and exceptionally strong winds and roughness in the Arabian sea, the weather department said, forecasting scattered rain in lower Sindh and along Makran coast during Wednesday-Friday.

It advised fishermen not to venture in the open sea until 31 Oct.

Kyarr is likely to move further northwestwards till tomorrow and then turn southwestward.

Currently a couple of hundred miles off the coast of Oman, Tropical Cyclone Kyarr reached peak strength in the past two days, with winds of around 250kph (155mph).

There are only around 1-2 tropical cyclones per year in the Arabian Sea, but storms this strength are very rare. Cyclone Kyarr has reached wind speeds equivalent to a super typhoon in the Pacific Ocean.