The cyclone is due to make landfall on Wednesday, with more than ۱۲ million people living along its projected path.
Published On ۲۷ Oct ۲۰۲۶
India is evacuating tens of thousands of people from its eastern coast as a strengthening Cyclone Arnab bears down on its coastal states.
The cyclone has intensified since Monday and is expected to make landfall by Wednesday morning.
The India Meteorological Department has issued a warning for the coastal states of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, saying the “very severe” cyclonic storm was centred only ۲۶۰km (۱۶۰ miles) southeast of the port city of Visakhapatnam, the most populous in Andhra Pradesh.
The department expects Arnab to turn northwest and cross the coast by ۱۱:۳۰am local time (۰۶:۰۰ GMT) on Wednesday, with sustained winds of ۱۱۵-۱۲۵km/h (۷۱-۷۸mph) and gusts of up to ۱۴۰km/h (۸۷mph).
Arnab formed over the Bay of Bengal, which is among the world’s main breeding grounds for tropical cyclones, frequently affecting India’s eastern coastal regions.
More than ۱۲ million people live along the cyclone’s projected path, which runs inland and north across India, according to Andhra Pradesh’s disaster management authority.
Nearly ۵۰,۰۰۰ people had been moved to shelters from vulnerable areas of the state by Monday night, out of an estimated ۴۰۰,۰۰۰ in need of evacuation, the authority’s managing director, Prakhar Jain, told the Reuters news agency.
“Evacuation is continuing,” Jain said.
Railway authorities in the region said on social media that at least ۱۲ trains had been cancelled in eastern India and services on ۵۳ routes along the southern coast had been suspended for Tuesday and Wednesday.
In Odisha, authorities have announced plans to evacuate ۴۸,۰۰۰ people out of harm’s way, according to local newspaper The Hindu.
Authorities in neighbouring Nepal have advised tourists to stay away from high-altitude areas over concerns that Arnab could trigger heavy rain, snowstorms and avalanches in the Himalayas from Thursday night to Saturday.
The advisory comes after a Himalayan flash flood in August killed about ۱,۵۰۰ people in the country.
