KOZHIKODE: The district administrations has alerted the departments concerned and warned the fishermen to keep off the sea as cyclone Ockhi was set to pass through the Arabian sea, 500 km off the Malabar coast by Saturday morning. District collector U.V. Jose, in a press release, warned the fishermen against venturing out to the sea and also alerted those in the coastal regions about the cyclone. "The winds may gather momentum along the coast," he said and added, "no fishing boats or country boats should enter the sea till Sunday evening."
"Fishing boats from other parts of the coasts also should not enter the Malabar coast," he said. In the Kappad coast, the sea had retreated about 500 metres on Friday spreading fear among local population and fishermen. The fisheries department also alerted the fishermen against going for fishing in the next 48 hours.
A 24-hour special control room has been opened at Beypore fisheries station with numbers 0495-2414074 and 9496007038 and e-mail: adfbeypore@gmail.com). Kasargod district collector K. Jeevan Babu also warned the fishermen to keep off the sea for the next 24 hours. According to the website of regional specialized meteorological centre for tropical cyclones, Ockhi was now over Lakshadweep area and adjoining southeast Arabian sea. It continued to move in the west-northwest direction during the past six hours.
