Cyclone Arnab Live: Landfall under way near Yanam, wind eases to 115-125 kmph

Cyclone Arnab's landfall process began around 1.20 am on Wednesday, October 28, with the storm crossing the Andhra Pradesh coast between Bapatla and Visakhapatnam, close to south of Yanam, as a very severe cyclonic storm. By its 6.30 am bulletin, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said the storm's wind speed had eased to 115-125 kmph gusting to 140 kmph, down from 125-135 kmph gusting to 150 kmph earlier, with Arnab remaining practically stationary over the west-central Bay of Bengal.

Andhra Pradesh and Odisha had shut schools, suspended fishing and moved people from low-lying coastal areas to relief camps and shelters ahead of the landfall. Follow this page for updates from IMD bulletins, the Andhra Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority (APSDMA) and our reporters.

Cyclone Arnab's landfall process is likely to be completed within the next hour, the India Meteorological Department said in its 8.30am bulletin, its 13th hourly update on the storm. The system remained practically stationary over the Andhra Pradesh and Yanam coasts, with the rear portion of the wall cloud region entering the coastal area.

Wind speeds near the centre held at 115-125 kmph gusting to 140 kmph, and are expected to gradually decrease over the next two hours. A storm surge of 1.0 to 1.5 metres above the astronomical tide is likely to inundate low-lying areas of Andhra Pradesh for another two hours, the IMD said.

The IMD flagged a moderate to high flash flood threat continuing over the next six hours in Anakapalli, Kakinada, Krishna, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam districts, along with Sri Alluri Sitharamaraju district, as rain-saturated soils and low-lying areas face a risk of surface runoff and inundation.

A separate 24-hour flash flood risk assessment named a wider set of districts across coastal Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Telangana, including Bapatla, Guntur, Krishna, Eluru, East Godavari and Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh, and Koraput, Ganjam and Kalahandi in Odisha.

About 6,000 electric poles have been uprooted across Konaseema district alone, the District Collector said, as strong winds and heavy rain under Cyclone Arnab's influence inundated low-lying areas and brought down coconut trees and poles in several places.

Houses were damaged in Mummidivaram, Yanam and surrounding areas, and a large tree fallen on the Draksharamam main road near Peddathallapalem disrupted traffic before being cleared, officials said. Farmers in the Ramachandrapuram constituency reported losses after paddy crops nearing harvest were flattened by the wind and rain.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu held a review teleconference with around 32,000 officials, from district collectors to field-level staff, after Cyclone Arnab's landfall, India Today reported. Officials told him no loss of life had been reported so far.

Naidu asked officials to clear trees fallen on roads, including national highways, within two hours, restore power supply as soon as winds ease, and ensure cyclone shelters have food, drinking water and medical care, sending people home only once conditions have fully settled. He also asked for preliminary estimates of crop damage.

Cyclone Arnab's wind speed eased to 115-125 kmph gusting to 140 kmph as of its 6.30am bulletin, down from 125-135 kmph gusting to 150 kmph earlier, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said. The storm remained practically stationary over the west-central Bay of Bengal, about 45 km south-southwest of Yanam and 30 km east of Narsapur, with the landfall process expected to continue for another two hours.

A storm surge of 1 to 1.5 metres above the astronomical tide was likely to inundate low-lying areas of Andhra Pradesh over the next three hours, the IMD said. The system is forecast to weaken into a cyclonic storm by Wednesday noon and a depression by Thursday, per the IMD's outlook.

Cyclone Arnab remained "practically stationary" along the Andhra Pradesh coast early on Wednesday, with the landfall process expected to continue for another 2-3 hours, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said in its 5.30am bulletin, PTI reported.

The northern spiral band of the cyclone had moved further inland, while the storm's centre remained very close to the coastline, the IMD said. Police rescued stranded people at some locations in the state as Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu reviewed the situation on Wednesday morning.

Rail authorities cancelled at least 12 trains in the eastern region and suspended services on 53 southern-coast routes, while Odisha cancelled at least 26 trains, taking the total to 91 cancellations across the affected regions, officials told PTI.

In Andhra Pradesh, nearly 5,000 pregnant women nearing their delivery date were shifted to hospitals as a precaution, officials said. The state has also arranged water tankers, generators and reverse osmosis plants to maintain essential services, and stocked two months' worth of essential commodities at 14,686 ration shops.

Several trees were uprooted and power lines snapped at multiple locations in Kakinada as Cyclone Arnab's landfall process continued along the Andhra coast, officials said. In Visakhapatnam, heavy rain and gusty winds uprooted trees, obstructing traffic on Beach Road and in Seethammadhara, according to Hindustan Times.

Rainfall recorded between 8.30am on October 27 and 4am on October 28 topped 260mm in parts of three districts, according to data cited by the Times of India. Kannuripalem in Anakapalle district recorded 261.5mm, the highest, followed by Thadi village (245.75mm), Paravada (245.25mm) and Atchutapuram (238.75mm) in the same district.

In Vizianagaram district, Vizianagaram town recorded 259.74mm, followed by Vepada (227.11mm) and Kothavalasa (223.75mm). In Visakhapatnam district, Visakhapatnam city recorded 259.06mm, followed by Simhachalam (236.25mm) and Padmanabhapuram (225.5mm).

Pagadala Peta was among the worst-affected areas as Cyclone Arnab's landfall continued, with officials shifting several residents to rehabilitation centres, the Times of India reported.

The landfall process of Cyclone Arnab continued over the Andhra Pradesh coast on Wednesday morning, with the storm's centre remaining close to the coastline, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said. The northern spiral band of the cyclone had moved further inland, and the landfall process was expected to continue for another three hours.

The cyclone was located over the west-central Bay of Bengal near latitude 16.4°N and longitude 82.0°E, around 30 km east of Narsapur, 45 km south-southwest of Yanam, 70 km south-southwest of Kakinada and 90 km east-northeast of Machilipatnam, IMD said.

Police in Kakinada rescued four people stranded in floodwaters near the Bombay Katta area after heavy rain and seawater inundated the locality overnight. The four had left for work in the morning but remained stranded until night after floodwaters surrounded their accommodation, a district police press release said.

Separately, three people were reported stranded at the Central Water Commission (CWC) godowns in Kakinada Anchorage Port after floodwater and seawater entered the premises, which also suffered a complete power outage, leaving night-shift personnel unable to leave.

Police have advised residents not to venture outdoors unless absolutely necessary and to stay away from flood-affected areas. Those trapped or needing emergency assistance were asked to call Dial 112 or the Kakinada Police Control Room.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu said the state had identified 2,199 cyclone shelters and drawn up evacuation plans prioritising the elderly, children, persons with disabilities and pregnant women. He said 2,360 pregnant women had already been shifted to medical facilities.

Twelve National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and ten State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams have been assigned to the affected districts, with deployment under way, Naidu said. Police, fire services and medical teams have been mobilised, while the Navy and Coast Guard are on standby to assist, he added.

Naidu appealed to residents to remain calm, cooperate with authorities and move to designated shelters when advised, and asked fishermen not to venture into the sea until official clearance is given.

The India Meteorological Department said a storm surge of 1.5 to 2.5 metres above the astronomical tide is very likely to inundate low-lying areas of Andhra Pradesh, with the maximum peak surge expected near Kakinada and Yanam (Puducherry UT), as Cyclone Arnab's landfall process continues.

IMD's rainfall data for the 24 hours up to 0030 hrs IST on Wednesday recorded 196.5mm at Yellamanchilli, 157mm at Ankapalle, 143.5mm at Gangavaram, 113mm at Ragolu and 111mm at Nagaralapeta-Kalingapatnam. Observed wind speeds included 87 kmph at Kakinada, 78 kmph at Bhimavaram (West Godavari/Konaseema) and 55 kmph at Narsapur, with the IMD noting gale winds of 125-135 kmph gusting to 150 kmph prevailing along the coast at the time.

Several trees were uprooted near the Yanam entrance on National Highway 216 due to the impact of Cyclone Arnab, ANI reported, citing visuals from the area as the storm's landfall process continued along the Andhra Pradesh coast.

Cyclone Arnab's landfall process began at around 1.20 am on Wednesday, with the storm hitting the Andhra Pradesh coast between Bapatla and Visakhapatnam, close to south of Yanam, as a very severe cyclonic storm packing maximum sustained winds of 125-135 kmph gusting to 150 kmph, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.

IMD Director-General Mrutunjay Mohapatra said the wind speed would continue at 125-135 kmph, gusting to 150 kmph, for the next four hours. "The tip of the system has already entered the land mass and the entire process will take around four hours," he said, PTI reported.

Heavy rainfall and strong winds continue over coastal Andhra Pradesh, Yanam and parts of southern Odisha under the cyclone's influence, the IMD said.

A 65-year-old man died at Mangalapalem in Visakhapatnam district after coming into contact with live electrical wires that had snapped and fallen into water, The Hindu reported.

Visakhapatnam recorded rainfall above 100 mm at several places through Tuesday, with at least 200 trees uprooted within city limits. Vizianagaram, Anakapalli and Srikakulam districts also saw widespread rainfall above 80 mm, the newspaper said.

The India Meteorological Department's bulletin issued at 5:30 pm on Tuesday forecast Arnab's maximum sustained wind speed easing to 125-135 kmph gusting to 150 kmph around landfall at 5:30 am Wednesday, then dropping to 80-90 kmph gusting to 100 kmph as a cyclonic storm by 11:30 am Wednesday, the IMD said.

The storm is expected to weaken further into a deep depression (50-60 kmph gusting to 70 kmph) by 5:30 pm Wednesday and into a depression by early Thursday as it tracks inland, according to the bulletin.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu said the government's priority was to avoid the loss of even a single life, PTI reported, after a review at his camp office in Undavalli on Tuesday evening.

Naidu said up to 15,000 electricity poles were expected to be uprooted and crops across 7.16 lakh hectares of agricultural land and 16 lakh hectares of horticultural land could be affected. Drones have been arranged to drop food and medicines in villages that may be cut off, he said, according to PTI.

Cyclone Arnab's landfall process has begun near Yanam, close to Kakinada, the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister's Office said. Officials told Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu that the storm has started crossing the coast, with the landfall process expected to be completed by 4am, the CMO said.

Rain and strong winds are likely to continue even after the landfall process is completed, officials said, urging people in affected areas to stay indoors and postpone travel.

The Yanam region of the Union territory of Puducherry was placed on red alert as the very severe cyclonic storm neared the coast between Bapatla and Visakhapatnam, close to Yanam, The Times of India reported.

Heavy rainfall accompanied by strong gusty winds swept across Yanam through Tuesday night as Cyclone Arnab closed in on the coast, The Times of India reported.

The sea level surged by 3 to 4 feet at Savithri Nagar in Yanam, flooding the ground floor of a local relief camp, according to the report.

At least 21 flights were cancelled at Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam airports as Cyclone Arnab approached the Andhra Pradesh coast, India Today reported, citing PTI. The Ministry of Civil Aviation held a review meeting to assess flight safety across coastal Andhra Pradesh and southern Odisha.

Nearly 5,000 pregnant women were moved to healthcare facilities in Andhra Pradesh as a precaution, India Today reported. Odisha separately moved around 3,000 women in advanced stages of pregnancy to hospitals or safer locations, per The Times of India.

Strong winds triggered by the cyclone uprooted coconut trees in Sakinetipalli mandal of Andhra Pradesh's Konaseema district, the district's Information and Public Relations department said, as gusty winds lashed the area.

Dr Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, Director General of Meteorology at the India Meteorological Department, told The Pioneer in a telephonic conversation around 1 a.m. on Wednesday that Cyclone Arnab's landfall process was expected to begin within the hour. He said there was no major deviation in the storm's track or intensity from IMD's forecast.

India Today and CNBC-TV18 reported Cyclone Arnab is likely to cross the Andhra Pradesh coast between 2 am and 4 am on Wednesday, within the India Meteorological Department's broader "forenoon" landfall window.

Wind speed estimates differ across reports citing the IMD: India Today put sustained winds at 135 kmph with gusts to 150 kmph, CNBC-TV18 cited 125-135 kmph sustained with gusts to 150 kmph, while News18, Hindustan Times and Adda247's current affairs desk cited a lower 115-125 kmph sustained with gusts to 140 kmph. The IMD's own bulletin could not be independently verified at the time of this update; the figures above should be treated as outlet-reported pending direct confirmation from the IMD bulletin.

Firstpost reported Odisha has evacuated about 48,000 people from vulnerable coastal areas and shut schools in 16 of its 30 districts as the storm approached.

India Today reported Andhra Pradesh has moved 84,396 people to 290 relief shelters, with the Navy, Coast Guard and disaster response forces placed on alert ahead of landfall.