Experts have reported that Cyclone Asna is currently less than 200 km from Sindh and is expected to hit the coastal areas, including Karachi, later this evening.
In a rare August weather event, Cyclone Asna has formed over the Saurashtra-Kutch region of Gujarat. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a bulletin indicating that a deep depression in this area is likely to intensify into a cyclonic storm. This is significant as it would be the first cyclonic storm to develop over the Arabian Sea in August since 1976.
Cyclone Asia’s Expected Path:
The deep depression over Saurashtra and Kutch is projected to move west-southwestward and is expected to emerge over the northeast Arabian Sea, near the Kutch region and adjacent Pakistan coasts. Once it strengthens into a cyclone, it will be named Asna, a name proposed by Pakistan. IMD forecasts suggest that even if the depression becomes a cyclonic storm, it is unlikely to impact the Indian coastline directly. Instead, it is expected to travel from the Saurashtra-Kutch region of Gujarat towards the Oman coast.
Current Situation in Pakistan:
The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has warned that a severe low-pressure system over the Arabian Sea is likely to become a cyclonic storm within the next 12 hours. PMD’s Chief Meteorologist, Sardar Sarfaraz, noted that if the system evolves into a cyclonic storm, it will be named “Asna,” meaning “highest” and “brighter.”
Sarfaraz emphasized the rarity of cyclones during the monsoon season, stating that this would be the first such system directed towards Sindh’s coastal belt from Central India since 1961. Meteorologist Anjum Nazir added that there is a very low chance (1-2%) of a low-pressure system turning into a cyclonic storm during the monsoon.
Impacts and Precautions:
The PMD expects heavy rains from the possible storm to affect Pakistan’s coastal belt, including lower Sindh and Karachi. Fishermen in lower Sindh and Balochistan have been advised not to venture into the sea until August 31 due to the cyclone.
The system may bring scattered heavy to very heavy rainfall to areas including Tharparkar, Badin, Thatta, Sajawal, Hyderabad, Tando Muhammad Khan, Tando Allah Yar, Matiari, Umerkot, Mirpurkhas, Sanghar, Jamshoro, Dadu, and Shaheed Benazirabad districts, as well as Karachi. This could lead to pluvial flooding or inundation in low-lying areas, flash flooding in hill torrents, and landslides in some regions.
Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah has instructed all relevant departments to prepare for potential disasters, including enhancing hospital management and monitoring dams and water passages.
