Cyclone Arnab kills three in Andhra Pradesh, damages 31 houses: NDRF

New Delhi: Andhra Pradesh bore the brunt of Cyclone Arnab, with three people killed and 31 houses damaged, a senior National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) officer said on Wednesday.

Disaster response and rescue teams from the Centre, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha are preparing to tackle the effects of rainfall expected to continue in the two states and adjoining areas, NDRF Inspector General Narendra Singh Bundela told reporters during a press briefing here.

The cyclone made landfall near Yanam in Puducherry and weakened from a very severe cyclonic storm to a severe cyclonic storm. It is expected to gradually weaken further into a cyclonic storm and eventually a deep depression by the evening, he said.

“North of Andhra Pradesh and the southern part of Odisha have been the most affected due to Cyclone Arnab. Strong winds and rainfall are being witnessed in a few districts of the two states,” Bundela said.

“Andhra Pradesh has been the most affected… we have been informed that trees have been uprooted, 31 houses of various types have been damaged and three persons have been killed.

“There has not been a serious impact in Odisha as per preliminary reports,” he said.

Bundela said 39 NDRF teams had been deployed in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, as well as in neighbouring Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Puducherry and Telangana, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, which were expected to be affected by the cyclone.

Four additional NDRF teams were sent to Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday night, he said.

Bundela said about 57,000 people had been moved to relief camps in Andhra Pradesh, while 38 people were evacuated from Yanam on Tuesday night.