Cyclone Murasu makes landfall near Ongole with 120 kmph winds
Severe cyclonic storm Murasu crossed the Andhra Pradesh coast early on Tuesday, causing heavy rainfall and uprooting trees.
Severe cyclonic storm Murasu made landfall near Ongole in the Prakasam district of Andhra Pradesh in the early hours of Tuesday, November 3. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the landfall process commenced at 1 am on Tuesday, with the storm crossing the coast between Nellore and Narsapur between 3.30 am and 5.30 am.
The cyclone brought winds of 100-110 kmph, gusting up to 120 kmph. According to reports from The Tribune, the storm uprooted thousands of trees, damaged hundreds of electric poles, and wrecked fishing boats. Heavy rainfall caused inundation in several areas, including Bapatla and Prakasam districts, and disrupted vehicular movement on national highways.
A storm surge of 1-1.5 metres above the astronomical tide was expected to inundate low-lying areas of south coastal Andhra Pradesh until Tuesday morning, with peak surges expected over Bapatla, Krishna, and Prakasam districts, the IMD said. Heavy rainfall was also forecast for Rayalaseema, Telangana, north Tamil Nadu, south Odisha, and south Chhattisgarh.
Local fisherman Krishnamma from Kothapatnam in Prakasam district said the government and NDRF teams helped evacuate around 400 families. Another resident, Mangamma, noted that while the government evacuated her family, one of her three boats was completely destroyed.
The IMD expects the system to weaken gradually into a cyclonic storm by noon on Tuesday and further into a deep depression by midnight. Coastal Andhra Pradesh is expected to see light to moderate rainfall at most places, with heavy to very heavy showers at a few locations and extremely heavy rainfall at isolated places.