India evacuates tens of thousands as Cyclone Arnab nears eastern coast in Andhra Pradesh state

HYDERABAD, India (AP) — Indian authorities on Tuesday evacuated tens of thousands of people from vulnerable coastal areas in the eastern state of Andhra Pradesh as a severe cyclone over the Bay of Bengal was expected to make landfall along the country’s east coast, authorities said.

The India Meteorological Department, or IMD, said Cyclone Arnab strengthened into a “very severe” cyclonic storm and was expected to make landfall along the Andhra Pradesh coast by Wednesday morning with gusting winds and heavy rain.

Authorities stepped up preparations and began evacuating people from low-lying and flood-prone areas ahead of its expected landfall. They also canceled some train services as heavy rain and gusty winds had already started lashing parts of the Andhra Pradesh coast, officials said. At least 89,000 people have so far been evacuated in Andhra Pradesh, according to an official statement.

The state’s disaster management authority said more than 12 million people live along the cyclone’s expected path.

Prakhar Jain, a top disaster management official in Andhra Pradesh, said the cyclone was moving at about 20 kph (12 mph). “Extremely heavy rains and strong gusty winds” are likely in parts of the coastal region on Tuesday and Wednesday due to the impact of the cyclone, he said.

Authorities set up over 2,000 cyclone shelters across 20 districts, while emergency alerts were being sent to the mobile phones of millions of residents, Jain said, according to the Press Trust of India news agency. More than 30,000 fishing boats were secured along the coast, while nearly 1,100 medical teams were deployed across affected areas to provide emergency assistance, he added.

In neighboring Odisha, officials plan to evacuate about 48,000 people from areas likely to be affected by the storm.