Cyclone Arnab Hits India's East Coast, Prompting Mass Evacuations

Cyclone Arnab made landfall along the eastern coast of India early Wednesday morning, battering the state of Andhra Pradesh with winds reaching up to 135 km/h (84 mph) and torrential rain. The powerful storm knocked down trees onto major roadways, disrupted regional electricity networks, and forced extensive transport cancellations.

Ahead of the storm's arrival, government authorities evacuated at least 180,000 people from coastal districts across Andhra Pradesh and neighbouring Odisha. Train routes and flights were halted to protect travellers, and schools across several districts were closed. Disaster officials warned that the cyclone's projected trajectory put more than 12 million residents in its path.

According to the India Meteorological Department, Arnab struck the coast as a "very severe cyclonic storm"—the agency's third-highest category—before weakening slightly to "severe" as it moved inland. Forecasters also warned that a storm surge of up to 1.5 metres above normal tide levels threatened to inundate low-lying coastal terrain, raising severe flooding risks for local communities.

Regional Precautionary Measures

The broader weather system has prompted emergency precautions in nearby countries. In Nepal, officials warned tourists against venturing into high-altitude areas, cautioning that Arnab could bring intense rainfall, snowstorms, and avalanches through Saturday. Nepali authorities also suspended the issuance of trekking permits for three days. The timing coincides with the country's peak trekking season, during which roughly 750 permits are granted daily, and follows a catastrophic glacial mountain collapse in August that killed over 1,400 people and left 5,000 missing.

In Sri Lanka, authorities shut schools and warned that peripheral bands of the storm could trigger hazardous flash floods and landslides.

Source: Al Jazeera.