Never said 'Burevi' would become violent storm: Met Dept.

Dismissing certain media reports where it was mentioned that cyclone Buruvi would become a violent storm, the Meteorology Department Director General Athula Karunanayake today clarified saying that he never mentioned that the cyclone 'Burevi' would become a violent storm.

Speaking to Daily Mirror, he said the typical features of a violent storm were not shown by Buruvi and therefore he never said it was a violent storm.

“I said very categorically the path of the storm would change and move away from the island, ” he added.

Karunanayake stressed that the damage that would have caused to the country by the recent cyclonic storm was mitigated through the commitment by the Disaster Management Centre (DMC) officials and security personnel under the guidance of the President and the Defence Secretary.

“We were also very keen on issuing accurate advisories on the calamity with the support of the DMC. Also, appropriate steps were taken to evacuate people from areas identified as vulnerable,” he added.

The cyclone 'Burevi' slammed into the eastern coast on Wednesday night and caused some damage to coastal buildings and power lines, as well as unleashed flash floods.

According to DMC, no critical damage was caused to respective areas due to the cyclone.

However, it said one person went missing while four others were injured and over 12,000 people were affected due to the the cyclone that hit the north-eastern shores. (Sheain Fernandopulle)