Cyclone Biparjoy: Oil rigs, Railways and airports claim to be fully prepared for big storm

Even as Cyclone Biparjoy weakens to a severe cyclonic storm, oil rigs, airports and transporters such as the Railways aren’t taking any chances. Likely to make landfall in Gujarat’s Saurashtra and Kutch regions Thursday evening, the large mass of air still has the potential to hit the region with storm surges, strong winds and heavy rainfall.

On Wednesday, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a red alert for Gujarat’s coastal areas. A day earlier, the Indian Coast Guard successfully evacuated 50 oil workers from the Key Singapore 01 jack-up rig located 25 nautical miles west of the coastal town of Okha in the western state.   

Officials at India’s largest crude oil and natural gas company ONGC told Business Today, “We have evacuated the non-core personnel from our offshore installations and drillships in the Arabian Sea.”

With two of the country’s largest ports Mundra and Kandla also located in the region, the cyclone’s progress is being closely monitored.

“We have taken robust measures to ensure that our port operations and people remain safe,” said a spokesperson at Mundra Port, adding, “While the port is not impacted, we remain fully alert and prepared with a comprehensive disaster management system that will enable us to ensure safety and respond effectively to any eventuality.”

Meanwhile, the world’s fourth largest rail transporter, Indian Railways has either terminated or cancelled the operation of a few trains as a precautionary measure in cyclone-prone areas in the western zone.

“To date, the Western Railway has cancelled 69 trains, short terminated 33 trains and short originated 27 trains as a precautionary measure, in view of safety of passengers and train operations,” said Sumit Thakur, Chief Public Relations Officer of Western Railway.

In addition, various other safety and security precautions have also been initiated for passengers, with refunds being processed under applicable rules.

The world’s busiest single runway airport, Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA), had proactively completed runway repair and maintenance work and undertaken critical checks nearly two weeks ago.

“A monsoon contingency plan has been put in place in coordination with internal and external stakeholders of the airport. We have devised the plan to respond and mitigate the effects of possible inclement weather, ensuring business continuity and assurance to all airlines and passengers that the airport functions round-the-clock,” informed a CSMIA official.

This is particularly significant as the airport has strong connectivity with all civilian airports located in areas where the cyclone is expected to make landfall and the airport is required to be fully prepared for any exigencies like emergency evacuations.

Meanwhile, the country’s largest carrier IndiGo has decided to waive off cancellation fee, provide full refund or accommodate customers on next available flight at no additional charge. This will be applicable to customers to or from Ahmedabad and Mumbai for two days between June 14-15.

“Customers have been notified of all flight cancellations and change in flight schedules in advance. We will continue to review the situation and provide real time updates through our social media platforms,” a company spokesperson told BT.