Cyclone Montha LIVE: Landfall process underway; one dead in Andhra’s Konaseema district

The IMD has forecast light to moderate rainfall at most places in Andhra Pradesh and Yanam, along with isolated heavy to very heavy showers till October 29.

Extremely heavy rainfall of more than 20 cm is likely at a few locations during the same period.

For October 30, the outlook includes heavy rain over parts of north coastal Andhra Pradesh.

On severe cyclonic storm ‘Montha’, Gajapati DM Madhumita has informed that landslides have been reported at several places due to the continuus rains in the district. “We cleared those areas this morning… To achieve our goal of zero casualties, 10,000 people have been relocated from sensitive areas… Pregnant women are also being taken care of. Our staff is actively working on the ground,” she said.

On Severe cyclonic storm ‘Montha’, Divisional Railway Manager at Waltair Division of East Coast Railway, Lalit Bohra said, “We have taken various measures which include opening a help desk at nine prominent stations, equipped with information about all trains which are running, cancelled, rescheduled, or diverted… So far, we have cancelled 23 trains…”

“We have opened additional refund counters, which have been provided with sufficient cash… To ensure faster restorations, we have kept excavators ready on wagons… We have kept 17 diesel power units that can run even when overhead power is unavailable. All of them are completely fueled. All our overhead water tanks are fully watered… We have hired a large number of generator sets to ensure uninterrupted electricity. We have taken measures to ensure that all our tree-cutting machines are ready… We have arranged a few satellite phones in case of a communication failure… Catering has been arranged at all the stations, and all have been directed to ensure there is no shortage of catering materials, including water bottles… Our war room has been operational for the last three days…”

Severe cyclonic storm Montha is likely to maintain the intensity for a period of six hours after its landfall over interior Andhra Pradesh and the adjoining areas including south Odisha, the IMD said on Tuesday.

The Met Department forecast very likely light to moderate rainfall at most places in Andhra Pradesh and Yanam and heavy to very rainfall at a few places till October 29.

“The severe cyclonic storm Montha is likely to maintain the intensity of a cyclonic storm for a period of six hours after the landfall over interior Andhra Pradesh and adjoining areas of south Odisha, south Chhattisgarh and Telangana,” a Met Department press release said.

The landfall process of Severe Cyclonic Storm (SCS) Montha began around 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday and Odisha CM Mohan Charan Majhi has informed that as many as 11,300 people have been evacuated and the government was gearing up to evacuate a total of 30,000 people.

CM Majhi said, “The eight districts of South Odisha – Ganjam, Gajapati, Rayagada, Koraput, Malkangiri, Kandhamal, Kalahandi, and Nabarangpur – are likely to be the most affected. The state government is fully prepared to deal with this situation. As always, our goal is zero casualties. To evacuate people, we have prepared 2,040 cyclone and flood-affected sites. So far, we have evacuated 11,396 people. We are monitoring the situation and are preparing to evacuate more than 30,000 people…We have deployed a total of 30 ODRF, 123 fire brigades, and five NDRF teams. We have also kept more teams on alert…”

Six persons were injured when a Jagaddhatri Puja pandal collapsed during a gale at Chandannagar in West Bengal’s Hooghly district on Tuesday afternoon, as thunderstorms accompanied by moderate rain lashed the region under the influence of severe cyclonic storm Montha, officials said. (PTI)

A woman died at Makanagudem village in Konaseema district as an uprooted palmyra tree fell on her due to gales, a police official told PTI.

Increasingly warmer oceans are resulting in intensifying storms, especially near coastal regions, as they derive energy from the warm waters, climate experts say. (AP)

“Global warming is increasing the air temperature and is also making oceans warm. And if an ocean is very warm, it is going to supply a lot of energy to any tropical storm over the ocean,” a meteorologist the AP spoke to said.

Andhra minister Nara Lokesh told news agency AFP that Cyclone Montha may affect close to four million (40 lakh) people.

The IMD, in an X post has said that Cyclone Montha’s wind speed will be 90–100 kmph, gusting up to 110 kmph

Odisha CM Mohan Manjhi has directed officials to ensure zero casualties as Cyclone Montha is set to strike the state late on Tuesday. Cyclone Montha has intensified into a severe cyclonic storm over the Bay of Bengal as rain lashed Odisha’s coastal region.

Kolkata, Howrah, Hooghly, North and South 24 Parganas – these are the districts in West Bengal that can expect heavy rainfall.

Heavy to very heavy rainfall lashed parts of southern and eastern Rajasthan, with Nainwa in Bundi district recording the highest at 130 mm in the last 24 hours till Tuesday morning, officials said.

Udaipur, Kota and nearby districts are expected to receive more heavy rainfall today. Light to moderate rain with thunderstorms is also expected in parts of Ajmer, Jaipur, Bharatpur and Jodhpur divisions, they said. (PTI)

Vaishnaw has directed all officials of East Coast Railway (ECoR) and South-Central Railway (SCR) zones to remain on high alert and to take proactive steps for the quick restoration of train services following the impact of severe cyclonic storm Montha’, which is expected to cross the Andhra Pradesh coast between Machilipatnam and Kalingapatnam near Kakinada. (ANI)

Jayashankar Bhupalpally, Mulugu, Bhadradri Kothagudem, and Mahabubabad districts of Telangana are on IMD’s red alert for heavy rains.

Several districts of Tamil Nadu are on IMD’s orange alert today, including Chengalpattu, Chennai, Kanchipuram, Ranipet, Thiruvallur, Tiruvannamalai and Villupuram.

National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) takes charge of relief, evacuation, restoration and rescue operation as Cyclone Montha intensifies. According to NDRF statement, a total of 25 teams across the likely affected coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, and Puducherry have been pre-deployed to minimise catastrophic impact. Notably, each team is equipped with boats, cutting equipment, communication eqpt and other specialised rescue tools.

Kakinada MP T Uday Srinivas on Tuesday said, “As of now the cyclone is expected to hit the southern region. We have taken all precautionary measures. The entire stretch has been alerted,” PTI reported.

He further noted that evacuation efforts are in full swing. “Nearly 600 camps are established and we have ensured that all medical, food facilities are provided. Pregnant women are evacuated to government hospitals,” he added.

Former Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik in a video message on Tuesday urged people to stay safe and alert during Cyclone Montha. He advised the public to follow government guidelines and cooperate with rescue and relief teams.

Several districts of Odisha are on IMD’s red alert for heavy rains, including Makangiri, Koraput, Rayagada, Gajapati, and Ganjam.

Several districts of Andhra Pradesh are on IMD’s red alert for extremely heavy rains expected today. The list includes Vizianagaram, Vishakhapatnam, Anakapalli, Kakinada, Yanam, Dr BR Ambedkar Konaseema and West Godavari.

IMD in its latest press release stated, “Thundersquall wind speed reaching 60-70 kmph likely over Chhattisgarh on 28th; with wind speed reaching 50-60 kmph on 29th October.”

IMD warned about “very rough to high sea condition” in coastal areas of Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.

District Collector Himanshu Shukla said, “The district of Nellore has been receiving continuous rainfall for the last 36 hours. The district has received an average of 5 cm of rainfall in the last 24 hours. Some mandals like Muthukur, Tipiguda, and Kovur have received more rainfall in the range of 7 cm to 8 cm,” PTI reported.

According to Himanshu Shukla, heavy rains in the district are expected to continue for the next 12 to 14 hours. Meanwhile, no major breach of tanks or overflow of the river was reported anywhere.

Cyclone Montha LIVE Tracker: Given below is the list of Odisha districts most at risk to suffer from heavy rain and strong winds

Ganjam, Gajapati, Rayagada, Malkangiri, Koraput, Nawarangpur, Kalahandi, Kandhamal, Nuapada, Boudh

On Tuesday, Andhra Pradesh Minister Nara Lokesh reviewed the cyclone preparedness from the RTGS centre at the Secretariat ahead of Cyclone Montha landfall, PTI reported.

Given below is the list of Andhra Pradesh districts most at risk to suffer from heavy rain and strong winds

Tirupati, Annamayya, Nellore, YSR Kadapa, Prakasham, Bapatla, Chittor, Nadyal, Palnadu, Guntur, Krishna, East & West Godavari, Konaseema, Kakinada, Anakapalli, Alluri Seetharamaraju, Visakhapatnam, Eluru, Vizianagaram, Srikakulam, Parvathi Puram Manya

IMD in its latest press release issued a warning to fishermen out at the sea to return immediately. It said, “Fishermen are advised not to venture into Southwest, adjoining central Bay of Bengal, along & off Tamil Nadu – Andhra Pradesh & Yanam (of Puducherry) coasts till 29th October, along & off Odisha coast till 29th October and along & off West Bengal coast during 28th-29th October. Those out at sea area should return to the coast immediately.”