Amaravati, Nov 3 (PTI) The severe cyclonic storm Murasu has left a trail of destruction in coastal Andhra Pradesh, uprooting thousands of trees, damaging hundreds of electric poles, and wrecking fishing boats, with people recounting their ordeal as the cyclone crossed the coast early on Tuesday.
Districts including Bapatla and Prakasam witnessed heavy rainfall and gusty winds, causing extensive damage to standing crops and many places came under sheets of water.
"This is the most dangerous cyclone we have witnessed in the last 14 years. The government has been very helpful and evacuated around 400 families from our village. NDRF teams also helped us shift to safer places," Krishnamma, a fisherman from Kothapatnam in Prakasam district told PTI, adding, now he has to find out the condition of his boats.
Another local resident, Mangamma, said she had lost her house during an earlier cyclone, but this time the government evacuated them before the landfall.
"I had lost my house in an earlier cyclone, and my family was also shattered. This time, the government evacuated us before the cyclone made the landfall. However, one of my three boats has been completely destroyed. Fishing is our livelihood," she said.
Thousands of trees were uprooted and hundreds of electric poles were damaged in the cyclone's impact, while many areas were left inundated.
Vehicles were stranded on national highways and motorists struggled to navigate due to poor visibility caused by heavy rainfall and gusty winds. The adverse weather conditions disrupted vehicular movement leaving commuters stranded at several locations.
According to the Meteorological Department, the severe cyclonic storm 'Murasu' crossed south Andhra Pradesh coast between Nellore and Narasapur, close to Ongole between 3.30 am and 5.30 am on Tuesday with wind speed of 100-110 kmph gusting to 120 kmph.
It is likely to weaken gradually into a cyclonic storm by noon and further into a deep depression by midnight of Tuesday.
In coastal Andhra Pradesh, on Tuesday, light to moderate rainfall is expected at most places, and heavy to very heavy showers at a few places, and extremely heavy rainfall at isolated places.
(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)