Very severe Cyclone Arnab offloaded near the coastal areas of Andhra Pradesh early on Wednesday, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) had said the process would go on for some hours.
The weather division has issued a bulletin at 6:30 am saying that the Cyclone has passed the west-central part of the Bay of Bengal and is nearing the coasts of Andhra Pradesh and Yanam. It was categorised as “very severe” cyclonic storm by IMD, following the second (severe) category.
Cyclone’s Location and Intensity
According to the IMD, the storm was located approximately 30 kilometres east of Narsapur, 45 kilometres south-southwest of Yanam, 70 kilometres south-southwest of Kakinada and 90 kilometres east-northeast of Machilipatnam.
“The cyclone is almost at a standstill and is likely to continue the process of landfall in the next two hours,” the IMD wrote in its bulletin.
The department predicted maximum sustained winds of 115-125 kilometres an hour with gusts up to 140 kilometres an hour.
A storm surge of around 1-1.5 metres was also anticipated to flood low lying areas on the coast of Andhra Pradesh and there was apprehension about inundation and damage.
Over 1.8 Lakh People Evacuated
The evacuation of over 1.8 lakh people takes step to protect the public before the cyclone.Prepares were enhanced in vulnerable areas for an evacuation of over 1.8 lakh people before the cyclone.
Heavy rain was experienced in some districts of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha due to Cyclone Arnab. The evacuations were intended to minimize threats to those in coastal and low elevation areas.
The authorities continued to monitor the storm’s progress and take appropriate action to mitigate the risks associated with its impact from strong winds and heavy rains and coastal flooding.