New Delhi: Andhra Pradesh bore the brunt of Cyclone Arnab, with three people killed and 31 houses damaged, a senior National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) officer said on Wednesday.
The disaster response and rescue teams of the Union government and those of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha are now bracing to tackle the effects of rainfall, which is expected to continue in the two states and adjoining areas, NDRF Inspector General (IG) Narendra Singh Bundela told reporters here during a press briefing.
The cyclone has made landfall near Yanam, Puducherry, and has weakened from a very serious cyclonic storm to a severe cyclonic storm. It is estimated that it will gradually lose strength to convert into a cyclonic storm and finally into a deep depression by the evening, he said.
"North of Andhra Pradesh and the southern part of Odisha have been the most affected due to Cyclone Arnab. Strong winds and rainfall are being witnessed in a few districts of the two states," Bundela said.
"Andhra Pradesh has been the most affected... we have been informed that trees have been uprooted, 31 houses of various types have been damaged, and three persons have been killed.
"There has not been a serious impact in Odisha as per preliminary reports," he said.
The IG said a total of 39 NDRF teams have been deployed in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, along with neighbouring Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Puducherry, Telangana and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, which were expected to be affected due to the cyclone.
Four additional NDRF teams were sent to Andhra Pradesh last night, he said. Bundela said that about 57,000 people were shifted to relief camps in Andhra Pradesh and 38 were evacuated from Yanam last night.