Cyclone Murasu to make landfall on Nov 3, states put on alert

A deep depression over the Bay of Bengal on Sunday, November 1, intensified into a cyclone which has been named ‘Murasu’ by India, meaning war drum.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the latest storm is set to intensify into a very severe cyclonic storm and make landfall on the morning of November 3 between Nellore and Narsapur in Andhra Pradesh, with wind speeds of 100-110 kmph, gusting to 120 kmph.

The previous cyclone to hit the Andhra Pradesh coast was Arnab. It had wind speeds up to 150 kmph when it made landfall on October 28.

Odisha steps up preparation

Neighbouring Odisha has also to stepped up preparedness in its southern region for another high-intensity storm in less than a week.

Manorama Mohanty, the director of the meteorological centre in Bhubaneswar, said Odisha will receive rainfall from November 2, and its intensity would increase on November 3, continuing through November 4 under the cyclone’s influence.

State Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari said the government was fully prepared to tackle the impending cyclone and assured people not to panic.

The state has already sounded a high alert in the southern region, including Ganjam, which was severely hit by Cyclone Arnab, he said, adding that the state government has ordered the evacuation of people from low-lying areas and hilly terrain before Cyclone Murasu makes landfall.

Odisha’s Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) Rajesh P Patil said the work was underway on two fronts — relief and restoration for people hit by the floods after Cyclone Arnab and preparation for the impending calamity ‘Murasu’.

“Relief and restoration work is progressing on a war footing… Ganjam and Kandhamal districts have been affected the most by Cyclone Arnab and resultant floods. As many as 1.18 lakh people have been impacted by this disaster,” the Patil said.

Patil said this time, the focus is on the hilly terrain, as landslides have emerged as a major challenge for disaster management. Odisha has reported 10 landslides due to incessant rain brought by Cyclone Arnab and five deaths so far in the calamity.

Learning from the calamity, the state has identified about 150 places in Gajapati district which are prone to landslides, and people would be evacuated from there by Monday afternoon, the officer said.

He said Cyclone Arnab and subsequent floods have affected 75,388 hectares of crop area and damaged 1,672 houses.

Andhra CM directs officials to gear up

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu also directed officials to remain fully prepared for relief and rescue operations.

“Another cyclone is approaching Andhra Pradesh and officials must remain fully prepared to undertake relief and rescue operations, as a severe cyclonic storm is expected to cross the coast near Bapatla on the morning of November 3,” said Naidu in an official press release.

The system is likely to bring moderate to heavy rainfall, with isolated extremely heavy showers, over south and central coastal districts on November 2.

Several areas may receive heavy to very heavy rainfall on November 3 and 4, with wind speeds of up to 110 kmph expected during landfall.

Of the 20 mandals forecast to receive extremely heavy rainfall, nine are in Eluru district, five each in Krishna and NTR districts and one in Bapatla.

On November 3, average district rainfall is expected to be around 179 mm in Eluru, 163 mm in Krishna, 161 mm in NTR, 147 mm in West Godavari, 119 mm in Guntur and 104 mm in Bapatla, said the release.

In view of the anticipated heavy rainfall, an inflow of around 32,500 cusecs is expected at Budameru on November 3. Heavy inflows are also likely in Errakalva, Gonelavagu, Jalleru and Pampa reservoirs, among others.

Preliminary estimates indicate that strong winds could damage around 15,128 electricity poles across 12 districts.

Naidu asked officials to prepare clear timelines for restoring power supply in the event of damage to electricity infrastructure and communicate the information to the public.

The CM suggested that the officials issue cyclone situation bulletins every four hours and telecom network operators take advance precautions to prevent mobile signal disruptions in areas likely to be severely affected.

Heavy rains predicted in Telangana

According to local weather enthusiast T Balaji, Nalgonda, Suryapet, Khammam, Yadadri-Bhuvanagiri, Nagarkurnool, Mahabubabad, and Bhadradri-Kothagudem districts of Telangana will experience heavy rains from November 3 to 5.

Moderate rains are also expected in Hyderabad during this time.

(With inputs from PTI.)

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