India evacuates tens of thousands as Cyclone Arnab nears eastern coast in Andhra Pradesh state
HYDERABAD, India (AP) — Indian authorities Tuesday evacuated tens of thousands of people from vulnerable coastal areas in eastern Andhra Pradesh state as a severe cyclone over the Bay of Bengal was expected to make landfall along the country’s east coast, authorities said.
The India Meteorological Department said Cyclone Arnab strengthened into a “very severe” cyclonic storm and was expected to make landfall along the Andhra Pradesh coast by early Wednesday morning with gusting winds and heavy rain.
According to officials at the state's disaster management authority, Cyclone Arnab’s outer bands began lashing parts of the Andhra Pradesh coast late Tuesday as the storm intensified over the Bay of Bengal and moved toward an earlier-than-expected landfall. Officials previously had predicted a landfall later in the morning.
“There is a possibility it will fully reach the coast between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. local time,” said Prakhar Jain, a top disaster management official in Andhra Pradesh. He said “heavy to very heavy” rainfall was expected in several districts under the influence of the cyclone.
“These critical hours require utmost vigilance,” Jain said.
Authorities placed all the state's coastal districts on high alert and began evacuating people from low-lying and flood-prone areas ahead of its expected landfall. They also canceled some train services as heavy rain and gusty winds had already started lashing parts of the coast, officials said. At least 89,000 people have so far been evacuated in Andhra Pradesh, according to an official statement.
The state’s disaster management authority said more than 12 million people live along the cyclone’s expected path.
Jain said the cyclone was moving at about 20 kph (12 mph).
“Extremely heavy rains and strong gusty winds” are likely in parts of the coastal region on Tuesday and Wednesday, he said. Officials warned that winds of up to 140 kph (87 mph) could accompany the storm at the time of landfall.
Authorities set up over 2,000 cyclone shelters across 20 districts, while emergency alerts were being sent to the mobile phones of millions of residents, Jain said, according to the Press Trust of India news agency. More than 30,000 fishing boats were secured along the coast, while nearly 1,100 medical teams were deployed across affected areas to provide emergency assistance, he added.
In neighboring Odisha, officials planned to evacuate about 48,000 people from areas likely to be affected by the storm.
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