VIJAYAWADA: Coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh, particularly the north coastal belt, were placed on high alert as the deep depression over the Bay of Bengal made landfall near Kalingapatnam in Srikakulam district around midnight. The process of landfall continued for nearly three hours.
According to bulletins issued separately by the India Meteorological Department and the Andhra Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority, the storm system’s landfall triggered widespread power disruptions across the northern region, and pushed local river basins to high-alert levels.
Heavy to very heavy rainfall is forecast across Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam, with Ranastalam, Laveru, and Etcherla warned of extremely heavy downpours.
Deep depression batters several coastal districts
Isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall is expected to persist through Thursday across Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Parvathipuram Manyam, Alluri Sitarama Raju, Polavaram, Visakhapatnam, Anakapalle, and Kakinada districts, with moderate to heavy spells extending to the Godavari basin and central coastal districts.
Extremely heavy downpours had already battered several northern and coastal districts over the 24-hour period ending at 8.30 am on Tuesday, with Palasa in Srikakulam recording a maximum of 141 mm.
This was followed by G Madugula at 100 mm, Bheemunipatnam at 97 mm, Koyyalagudem at 94 mm, Kunavaram at 91 mm, and Gopalapuram at 89 mm. Although overall rainfall intensity decreased over the subsequent 12 hours, administrative and disaster management teams remain on active vigil as rain bands continue moving inland.
Reviewing the State preparedness from Amaravati, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu chaired a high-level emergency meeting with Chief Secretary G Sai Prasad, Director General of Police Harish Kumar Gupta, Cabinet Ministers, and senior officials.
Assessing storm trajectories across 261 monitored mandals—where 129 mandals anticipate heavy rainfall and 11 face extremely heavy to severe downpours—the Chief Minister instructed District Collectors to maintain round-the-clock vigilance, immediately alert low-lying habitations, and continuously monitor river inflows to manage reservoir storage safely.
Concurrently, Deputy Chief Minister (Panchayat Raj and Rural Development) Pawan Kalyan directed field machinery to prioritise the protection of human life and public property.
He ordered the immediate evacuation of vulnerable populations to relief camps equipped with adequate food, clean drinking water, and medical care.
Mandating war-footing restoration of damaged rural roads, culverts, and power lines, he also directed officials to arrange fodder and water for livestock while maintaining seamless inter-departmental synergy with Revenue, Police, Electricity, and Health teams.
Transport Minister Mandipalli Ramprasad Reddy instructed RTC and Transport Department officials, particularly in the north coastal districts, to stay alert and respond immediately to any emergency as heavy rains lash several parts of AP due to influence of low pressure over Bay of Bengal.
Storm ALERT
Heavy Rainfall Peak: Palasa (Srikakulam) recorded a maximum rainfall of 141 mm, followed by Seethammadhara (Visakhapatnam) at 136.6 mm and G Madugula at 100 mm.
High-level Readiness: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Deputy CM Pawan Kalyan placed 261 mandals on high alert, ordering evacuations and war-footing restoration of damaged roads and power lines
Disaster Response: Nine NDRF and SDRF teams deployed across Srikakulam, Alluri Sitarama Raju, Visakhapatnam, Polavaram and Anakapalle
Emergency Helplines: 112, 1070, and 1800 4250101 activated
Essential Services: Medical staff leaves cancelled and 24x7 control rooms set up, while power utilities mobilised 3,599 personnel into 266 teams for rapid outage restoration