8:52: Cyclone Phylan crosses Western Coast.
7.35 pm: Cyclone Phylan will weaken in six hours, said the IMD.
7.00 pm: Home ministry puts on alert eight coastal states and union territories on Cyclone Phyan.
5.50 pm: The cyclone alert for Maharashtra remains, however the cyclone has weakened considerably, said the IMD. However the warning has been withdrawn for Gujarat and Goa.
4.55 pm: More than 35 trawlers, carrying 200 fishermen from Goa, have been missing after gusty winds lashed the western coast.
Fishermen at Malim jetty, located next to Panaji, said more than 28 trawlers have not returned since Tuesday night and lost contact with the base.
4.35 pm: According to some reports, Cyclone Phyan is weakening. The reports added that the Gujarat government has withdrawn the cyclone alert.
4.45 pm: Cyclone Phyan has bypassed Mumbai at 2 pm, said IMD officials.
3.30 pm: The Gujarat government has issued a high alert in the coastal areas of Bhavnagar. South Gujarat has been declared a 'high-risk' zone.
The cyclone is expected to pass the Valsad-Mumbai belt after 6 pm, at a wind speed of 100 km ph.
3.10 pm: Flight and train services have been hit in Mumbai due to incessant rains. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has asked Mumbai residents to stay indoors till the cyclone is over.
3.05 pm: According to the latest IMD report, Cyclone Phyan might damage power and communication lines along Maharashtra and Gujarat coasts.
"Gale wind-speed reaching 70-80 km ph, gusting up to 90 km ph, is likely along and off Maharashtra and south Gujarat coasts during the next 24 hours. Sea condition will be high to very high over, along and off Maharashtra and south Gujarat coasts," says IMD.
The IMD predicted rainfall at most places, with heavy to very heavy falls at a few places, and isolated extremely heavy fall over Konkan & Goa, central Maharashtra and south Gujarat region in the next 24 hours.
The next bulletin by the IMD is expected at 5.30 pm.
2.45 pm: Hundreds of fishing trawlers may be stranded due to the cyclone, say Coast Guard sources.
2.35 pm: Cyclone Phyan is 350 km away from Mumbai, said authorities, adding that they are ready for the storm. IMD officials earlier said that the cyclone might skip Mumbai and head for south Gujarat.
2.22 pm: Authorities have ordered the evacuation of some villages in Navasari and Valsad in Gujarat.
2.20 pm: Cyclone Phyan will not hit Goa, according to the IMD.
2.18 pm: Karnataka government has declared an alert in its coastal areas.
Earlier Reports:
Images: Cyclone brings rain to Mumbai
Cyclone 130 kms away from Maharashtra
