Cyclone Arnab hits Andhra coast; over 84,000 people moved to shelters

Cyclone Arnab made landfall near Narsapur in Andhra Pradesh’s West Godavari district around 3 am Wednesday, bringing heavy rain and strong winds to eight coastal districts.

More than 84,000 people have been evacuated to shelters, while the Andhra Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority (APSDMA) warned of gale-force winds of up to 135 kmph in Kakinada, Konaseema, and East Godavari districts.

Polavaram, Kakinada, Konaseema, East Godavari, West Godavari, Eluru, NTR, and Krishna districts bore the brunt of the heavy rain.

While no injuries or casualties have been reported so far, some old and uninhabited buildings collapsed.

STORY | Cyclone Arnab’s landfall process continues along Andhra coast

The landfall process of “very severe” cyclonic storm Arnab was continuing along the Andhra Pradesh coast on Wednesday, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said, with the storm’s centre remaining very close to the coastline.

The northern spiral band of the cyclone has further entered the land, and the landfall process is expected to continue for the next three hours, it said.

“The centre of very severe cyclonic storm Arnab remains very close to the Andhra Pradesh coastline, and the landfall process is continuing,” the Met department said in an official press release.

The cyclone was located over the west central Bay of Bengal, close to the Andhra Pradesh coast, near latitude 16.4 degrees north and longitude 82.0 degrees east, about 30 km east of Narsapur, 45 km south-southwest of Yanam, 70 km south-southwest of Kakinada and 90 km east-northeast of Machilipatnam.

The system is likely to continue moving northwestwards and cross the Andhra Pradesh and Yanam coasts between Bapatla and Visakhapatnam, close to the south of Yanam, as a very severe cyclonic storm, with maximum sustained wind speeds of up to 135 kmph and gusts reaching 150 kmph during the next three hours, said the IMD.

READ: https://t.co/nXD45bLWOs

(Photos: Nani Narendra/PTI)

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) October 28, 2026

Evacuations

Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu appealed to people living in the coastal districts to stay indoors and follow cyclone advisories being issued by the government and APSDMA.

Naidu said 290 shelters were set up and 84,396 people have been shifted to these shelters so far.

He said heavy rain may cause flooding in the Nagavali and Vamsadhara rivers in North Coastal Andhra, and that teams have taken measures to immediately restore tanks in the event of breaches.

Story continues below this ad

The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Indian Navy, and the Indian Coast Guard have also been put on alert.

CM’s directions

Naidu held a meeting with 32,000 officials and directed them to clear fallen trees within two hours, restore power quickly, and protect tanks and canals from breaches.

He also held a separate review with senior officials of the Energy, Irrigation, Roads and Buildings, Agriculture, Municipal Administration and Urban Development, and Panchayat Raj departments.

The chief minister directed officials to clear trees that have fallen on roads within two hours and ensure that trees fallen on national highways are removed in real time.

Story continues below this ad

Naidu directed officials to ensure that cyclone shelters have adequate food, drinking water and medical care, and that people are sent home only after the situation has fully settled.

He directed officials to take firm steps to prevent breaches in tanks and canals, closely monitor inflows into minor irrigation tanks, prevent them from overflowing and alert people living in nearby areas.

He asked them about crop damage and directed officials to prepare preliminary estimates. He instructed them to prevent water from entering agricultural fields and take all necessary measures to protect horticultural crops. He also asked them to brief the Centre on the steps the state government is taking.

He asked officials to coordinate with water users’ associations to ensure effective irrigation management. He directed officials to keep NDRF and SDRF teams on standby to respond to emergencies.

Story continues below this ad

The Andhra Pradesh chief minister instructed officials to make full use of Mana Mitra, the state’s WhatsApp-based governance service, so people can report problems and complainants are informed once their issues are resolved. He also asked them to keep Swarna Grama and Ward Secretariats updated at all times.

Drones, tankers and generators

In the affected districts, drones have been kept on standby to deliver food and medicines if villages get inundated. Arrangements have also been made to ensure that food supplies reach children and lactating mothers through Anganwadi centres and that ration supplies are delivered.

Nearly 5,000 pregnant women have already been shifted to Primary Health Centres, Community Health Centres, and nearby hospitals. Tankers and generators have been arranged to ensure the supply of safe drinking water. Around 8,400 personnel have been kept ready to respond immediately to power disruptions.

More than 30,000 fishing boats have been brought back from the sea. In Gopalpur, 93 boats belonging to Andhra Pradesh, along with their crews, are safe.

Story continues below this ad

Officials have said crops spread across 7.16 lakh hectares and horticultural crops covering 16 lakh hectares could be affected.