Cyclone Vayu: Fishermen in Gujarat claim heavy losses, seek govt assistance

Gir Somnath: As very strong winds hit the region and the sea turned rough due to cyclone Vayu, the fishermen in Veraval coastal area of the district have claimed that at least 40 to 45 boats were damaged due to the impact of cyclone.

Anwar Patel president of Veraval Fishermen Community said, "heavy winds and waves as of now have damaged 40 to 45 boats at Jaleshwar area of Veraval."

Outlining the gravity of situation, he asserted that after 1982 he had witnessed such huge waves for the first time.

Another fisherman, Gafur Bhai Patel demanded assistance from government and said, "These boats are our livelihood and government must help us during such loss is not easy to bear for us," he said.

As of Thursday afternoon, Ministry of Earth Science had stated that very Severe Cyclonic Storm VAYU is very likely to move north-northwestwards for some time and then northwestwards skirting the Saurashtra coast affecting Gir Somnath, Diu, Junagarh, Porbandar and Devbhoomi Dwarka with wind speed 135-145 kmph gusting to 160 kmph from afternoon of June 13th.