Barely a week after Cyclone Arnab left a trail of destruction across the coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh, the state is bracing for another cyclonic storm, which is likely to make landfall early on Tuesday morning.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said in its latest bulletin that Cyclone Murasu is expected to intensify into a very severe cyclonic storm before making landfall between Nellore and Narsapur in Andhra Pradesh during the intervening night of November 2 and 3. The storm is expected to bring wind speeds of 100-110 kmph, gusting to 120 kmph.
The system moved nearly northwestwards at a speed of 20 kmph over the past six hours and was centred over the same region at 2.30 am, the IMD said.
The severe cyclonic storm was centred near latitude 13.6°N and longitude 82.5°E, about 260 km east-northeast of Chennai, 290 km east-southeast of Nellore, 320 km south-southeast of Machilipatnam, 310 km east-southeast of Kavali, 330 km southeast of Ongole and 470 km south of Visakhapatnam.
The cyclone has been named 'Murasu' by India, meaning 'war drum'.
The administrations of coastal districts have stepped up preparedness, deploying fire station teams and heavy machinery at strategic locations to respond to emergencies.
Three teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), stationed at Arakonam in Tamil Nadu, have been sent to Andhra Pradesh to spearhead rescue and relief operations.
Neighbouring Tamil Nadu and Odisha are also on high alert after the weather agency forecast heavy to very heavy rainfall over the next three days.
On November 2, heavy to very heavy rainfall is forecast at isolated places in Chennai and Tiruvallur, while heavy rain is likely to continue in Chengalpattu, Kancheepuram, Ranipet, Vellore and the Nilgiris.
The intensity of rainfall is expected to decrease on November 3, with heavy rain likely to be confined to isolated places in the Nilgiris.
Odisha, where the death toll from Cyclone Arnab has risen to six, is also preparing for the fresh storm. Manorama Mohanty, director of the Meteorological Centre in Bhubaneswar, said the state would receive rainfall from November 2, with its intensity expected to increase on November 3 and continue through November 4 under the influence of the cyclone.
Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari said the government was fully prepared to tackle the impending cyclone and urged people not to panic.
"While retaining the arrangements made for Cyclone Arnab, the state has upgraded its machinery and preparedness to deal with the situation," he said.
Some districts in southern Odisha have announced the closure of schools and colleges until November 3.
