Daijiworld Media Network - Amaravati
Amaravati, Oct 29: The severe cyclonic storm Montha, which crossed the Andhra Pradesh coast near Machilipatnam in the early hours of Wednesday, has now weakened into a cyclonic storm, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said. The cyclone brought with it heavy rains, gusty winds, and widespread disruption across several coastal districts.
According to the IMD’s 2:30 a.m. bulletin, the storm moved northwestwards at a speed of 10 kmph before weakening. It was centered around 20 km west-northwest of Narsapur, 50 km northeast of Machilipatnam, and 90 km west-southwest of Kakinada. Officials confirmed that the system was being closely tracked using Doppler weather radars in Machilipatnam and Visakhapatnam.
The weakening of Montha was in line with earlier forecasts, as it began to lose intensity after moving inland. However, heavy rainfall and strong winds continued to batter West Godavari, East Godavari, and Krishna districts. Flood alerts were issued in several low-lying areas, with authorities urging residents to remain indoors and exercise caution.
Confirming the landfall, the IMD posted on X, “The severe cyclonic storm Montha has crossed the Andhra Pradesh and Yanam coasts between Machilipatnam and Kalingapatnam, to the south of Kakinada.” The process was completed shortly after midnight, accompanied by intense rainfall and gale-force winds that uprooted trees and damaged power lines.
In Machilipatnam, electricity supply was disrupted along Manginapudi Beach Road after a palm tree fell on power cables. Power restoration work was initiated immediately by local authorities.
Earlier on Tuesday night, the IMD had said the storm was moving northwestwards at 15 kmph and was centered about 60 km east of Machilipatnam, 100 km south-southwest of Kakinada, 230 km southwest of Visakhapatnam, and 480 km southwest of Gopalpur in Odisha.
The after-effects of Montha are likely to be felt across Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Jharkhand, and West Bengal over the next few days, with heavy rain warnings in place.
In view of the cyclone, the Andhra Pradesh government imposed a night curfew from 8:30 p.m. Tuesday to 6 a.m. Wednesday in seven affected districts — Krishna, Eluru, East Godavari, West Godavari, Kakinada, Dr BR Ambedkar Konaseema, and parts of Alluri Sitarama Raju. Only emergency medical services were exempted from the curfew.
District Collectors and Superintendents of Police were directed to halt all vehicular movement, including on national highways passing through the cyclone-hit areas.
Officials have cautioned that while the storm has weakened, heavy rains and gusty winds may continue for several hours, and restoration operations are expected to take time in severely affected regions.