Cyclone Montha makes landfall; Andhra, Odisha bear the brunt

Severe Cyclonic storm Montha on Tuesday crossed the coast off Andhra Pradesh, causing disruptions in the southern state, while the impact was also felt in neighbouring Odisha, where normal life was affected in 15 districts.

The landfall process started around 7 pm, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said, adding that the weather system in the Bay of Bengal will cross Andhra Pradesh coast between Machilipatnam and Kalingapatnam around Kakinada.

It will cross with a maximum sustained wind speed of 90 to 100 kmph and gusting up to 110 kmph.

It will continue to move north-northwestwards and cross Andhra Pradesh coast between Machilipatnam and Kalingapatnam around Kakinada during next 3-4 hours.

Standing crops spread over 38,000 hectares and horticulture crops in 1.38 lakh hectares were destroyed in Andhra Pradesh due to the impact of the severe cyclonic storm 'Montha', the CMO said on Tuesday.

The IMD predicted heavy to extremely heavy rainfall in coastal Andhra Pradesh, Rayalaseema, Telangana, South Chhattisgarh, and Odisha.

All 32 flights operating out of Visakhapatnam Airport have been cancelled on Tuesday owing to the cyclonic storm.

Visakhapatnam Airport Director N Purushottam said two Air India Express flights were cancelled on Monday.

"Actually, we are operating 30 to 32 movements (flights) daily, domestic as well as international. Today, all those flights are cancelled," Purushottam said, according to PTI.

He said the airport had taken precautions to shield it from the severe cyclonic storm as per the Airports Authority of India (AAI) guidelines, covering pre-cyclone and post-cyclone phases.

Likewise, Vijayawada Airport cancelled 16 flights on Tuesday, but managed to operate five flights.

"Yesterday (Monday) there was only one flight cancellation to Vizag. But today (Tuesday), 16 flights were cancelled to various destinations, including Delhi and Mumbai," said Vijayawada Airport Director Lakshmikanth Reddy.

Similarly, four flights were cancelled from Tirupati Airport.

Meanwhile, 120 trains were cancelled in all on Monday and Tuesday across the South Central Railway Zone, said a Railway official.

Odisha opens over 2,000 cyclone shelters

Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Tuesday said his government was well prepared to face the challenges posed by cyclone Montha and had opened over 2,000 disaster relief centres in eight southern districts for people likely to be impacted by the severe cyclonic storm.

He said 11,396 people had shifted to 2,048 disaster relief centres.

Majhi said this after reviewing the preparedness of the State government at a high-level meeting attended by Revenue and Disaster Management minister Suresh Pujari, Chief Secretary Manoj Ahuja, DGP Y B Khurania and other senior officials.

Heavy rain forecast in several West Bengal districts

Severe cyclonic storm Montha will bring heavy rainfall in several districts of West Bengal till October 31, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Tuesday.

Montha, which is currently situated over west-central Bay of Bengal and is moving in the north-northwestward direction, is likely to make landfall near Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday night, the IMD said in a special bulletin.

The Met office advised fishermen not to venture into the sea along and off the West Bengal coast till Thursday.

Cyclonic storm intensifies into severe cyclonic storm

Cyclonic storm Montha over the west-central Bay of Bengal moved north to northwestwards with a speed of 15 kmph during the past six hours and intensified into a severe cyclonic storm by 5.30 am on Tuesday, said the Meteorological Department.

The weather system lay centred 190 km south to southeast of Machilipatnam, 270 km south to southeast of Kakinada and 340 km south to southeast of Vizag at 5.30 am.

"The cyclonic storm Montha over west-central Bay of Bengal moved north-northwestwards with a speed of 15 kmph during the past six hours (and) intensified into a severe cyclonic storm and lay centred at 5.30 am about 190 km south to south-east of Machilipatnam," said the Met Department in an official release.

It is likely to continue to move north-northwestwards and cross the Andhra Pradesh coast between Machilipatnam and Kalingapatnam around Kakinada during the evening and night of Tuesday as a severe cyclonic storm with a maximum sustained wind speed of 90 to 100 kmph and gusting to 110 kmph.

The Met Department forecast heavy rains across several places of the southern States under the influence of Montha.

Montha means a fragrant flower in Thai language.

Rain lashes eight southern Odisha districts

Rain lashed eight southern Odisha districts as cyclone Montha intensified into a severe cyclonic storm.

Keeping in view the impending situation, the Odisha government has evacuated people from low-lying areas and also hilly terrain prone to landslides in the eight districts of Malkangiri, Koraput, Rayagada, Gajapati, Ganjam, Nabarangpur, Kalahandi and Kandhamal and deployed 140 rescue teams (over 5,000 personnel) of NDRF, ODRAF and Fire Service.

The administration has already announced the closure of schools and anganwadi centres in nine districts till October 30, while East Coast Railway has announced cancellation, diversion, and short termination of some trains operating in the Waltair region and connected routes. The leave of government employees has also been cancelled till October 30.

The administration has also sealed all sea beaches to prevent tourists and local people from entering beaches, Special Relief Commissioner D K Singh said.

Red alert in many districts

As many as 16 districts in Andhra Pradesh are on a red alert as the State is bracing itself for the landfall of the cyclone.

Officials have been instructed by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu to evacuate inhabitants of coastal districts at risk of the cyclone to designated rehabilitation centres.

Leave of all government employees has been cancelled. Control centres of the SDRF and APSDMA have been activated, and satellite phones have been arranged to maintain communication.

Authorities have set up cyclone shelters across 57 coastal mandals and brought 62 mechanised boats back to shore.

Tourist movement along coastal areas has been banned, while educational institutions in most coastal districts have been closed until Wednesday. SDRF and NDRF teams were kept on standby for emergency operations.

Vulnerable populations, including pregnant women, the elderly and coastal belt residents, have been shifted to safer locations. Around 260 relief centres have been readied in Kakinada and 140 in Nellore, with food, milk and water stocked for two to three days.

Train, flight services cancelled

Railway authorities have cancelled as many as 65 passenger and express trains across coastal Andhra Pradesh as Cyclone Montha approaches the State’s coast. The cancellations affect key routes through Vijayawada, Rajahmundry, Kakinada, Visakhapatnam and Bhimavaram and will remain in place from October 28 to 29

The East Coast Railway has also suspended several services along the Odisha-Andhra Pradesh corridor.

Flight operations have also been affected. All IndiGo and Air India Express flights scheduled for Tuesday at Visakhapatnam Airport have been cancelled due to adverse weather. Passengers are advised to check flight status before travelling to the airport.

NDRF teams deployed

The NDRF has pre-deployed its 25 teams across the likely affected coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh and Puducherry. A total of 20 additional teams are kept on standby at strategic locations for immediate deployment, if required. Each team is equipped with boats, cutting equipment, communication equipment and other specialised rescue tools to carry out evacuation, relief, and restoration operations

(With PTI inputs)