Sakhalin, Kuriles and Kamchatka warned of approaching cyclone.

26/1 Tass 63

VLADIVOSTOK, January 26 (Itar-Tass) - Sakhalin, the Kuriles and
Kamchatka received on Tuesday an emergency warning of an approaching
cyclone, Itar-Tass reported from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.
A heavy blizzard with a visibility of under 500 metres and wind gusts
of 35 metres per second are expected in the north of Sakhalin Island,
reported the press service of the Far Eastern regional centre of the
Russian Ministry of Emergencies.
Classes at schools were cancelled in the city of Okhta, and the
Vanino-Kholmsk ferry service between and mainland and Sakhalin Island
suspended its operations. Four ferries, each one designed to carry 26 rail
wagons and 100 passengers, found shelter in the ports of Vanino and
Sovgavan, Khabarovsk Territory.
The cyclone with gale winds, snowfalls and blizzards approached the
Kamchatka coast from the Sea of Okhotsk. A heavy snowfall started in the
Yelizovsky, Ust-Bolsheretsky, Milkovsky and Ust-Kamchatsky districts as
well as in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. Wind gusts of 25-27 m/sec were
recorded on the south-western coast of the peninsula.
Emergency situations are possible at facilities of housing and
communal services, as are ruptures of power transmission and communication
lines in Sakhalin, the Kuriles and Kamchatka. Blizzards and ice-covered
highways may result in an increase in road accidents. Rescuers warned of
the approaching cyclone all ships in the Bering and Okhotsk seas.
All forces of the Kamchatka and Sakhalin branches of the Russian
Ministry for Emergencies were put on red alert so as to respond promptly
to possible emergencies.
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