Thousands of people were evacuated along India’s eastern coast on Tuesday, a day before severe Cyclone Arnab was due to make landfall, bringing strong winds and heavy rain, Reuters reported. The storm, which formed over the Bay of Bengal, had intensified since Monday and was expected to hit Andhra Pradesh by Wednesday morning.
Nearly 50,000 people had been moved to shelters from vulnerable areas by Monday night, out of an estimated 400,000 needing evacuation, Andhra Pradesh disaster management chief Prakhar Jain told Reuters. At least 12 trains were cancelled and services on 53 routes along the southern coast were suspended for Tuesday and Wednesday.
In neighbouring Nepal, authorities cautioned tourists against high-altitude areas, fearing the cyclone could bring downpours, snowstorms and avalanches in the Himalayan region from Thursday night through Saturday. The Bay of Bengal is one of the world’s major cyclone regions, making India’s eastern coast especially vulnerable.
Sources: Reuters, India Meteorological Department. Written in our own words for information only.