Amaravati: Due to the impact of the ‘Murasu’ cyclone formed in the Bay of Bengal, extremely heavy rainfall is occurring in the Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra regions.
Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has sent a report to the central government stating that the recent ‘Arnab’ cyclone in Andhra caused losses of Rs. 4,600 crore. In addition, 9 people tragically lost their lives due to electrocution and walls collapsing during the Arnab cyclone.
As restoration work was completed and people were returning to normal life, the next low-pressure area that formed over the west-central Bay of Bengal turned into a cyclone. It was named “Murasu.” This cyclone again changed direction toward Andhra. The Visakhapatnam Meteorological Center had warned that the “Murasu” cyclone would cross the coast near Ongole between Nellore and Narsapur from midnight on Monday to early Tuesday morning.
As of 6 p.m. yesterday, it was centered 80 km from Nellore, 90 km from Kavali, 160 km from Tirupati, 120 km from Ongole, and 150 km from Bapatla. Over the past 6 hours, it had been moving toward the coast at a speed of 12 km per hour. The Visakhapatnam Meteorological Center had warned that when Cyclone Murasu crosses the coast around midnight, cyclonic winds would blow at speeds of 100 to 120 km per hour.
Due to Cyclone Murasu, continuous rain and, in some places, heavy rain have been falling since yesterday morning in Andhra's Nellore, Bapatla, Prakasam, Guntur, Tirupati, and Chittoor districts. After evening, strong winds began blowing from Nellore to Bapatla.
Schools and colleges in Nellore, Bapatla, and Prakasam districts were declared closed yesterday. Due to Cyclone Murasu, the South Central Railway cancelled 7 trains yesterday: Vijayawada-Kuduru, Kuduru-Vijayawada, Guntur-Tenali, Tenali-Repalle, Markapur Road-Tenali, Tenali, and Guntur.
