Dark clouds hover over the Kandula Obul Reddy Reservoir in Prakasam district on Saturday.
| Photo Credit: Kommuri Srinivas
The weather system in the Bay of Bengal is likely to strengthen into a very severe cyclonic storm and cross the Andhra Pradesh and Yanam coasts between Bapatla and Visakhapatnam by the forenoon of October 28, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Sunday (October 25, 2026). Winds of 115 to 125 kmph, gusting to 140 kmph, are expected when it crosses the coast.
At 5.30 a.m. on Sunday, the system was a depression about 880 km east-southeast of Visakhapatnam, 980 km from Kakinada, 1,080 km from Machilipatnam and 1,150 km from Bapatla. The IMD expects it to become a cyclonic storm by Monday (October 26) morning and a severe cyclonic storm by the morning of October 27, before it heads north-west towards the coast.
Evacuation plan
The Andhra Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority (APSDMA) has begun preparing for the landfall. Its Managing Director, Prakhar Jain, told The Hindu that people living in low-lying areas and kutcha houses in the coastal districts from Bapatla to Vizianagaram would be evacuated to shelters.
He said the impact was expected in Bapatla, Krishna, West Godavari, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Konaseema, Kakinada, Anakapalli, Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram and Srikakulam districts. Not much impact was expected in Tirupati and SPSR Nellore districts, he said, adding that more clarity would emerge after the cyclone formed on Monday.
Andhra Pradesh has 12 battalions of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and seven of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the State has asked for three more NDRF battalions.
Rain before the storm
Even as the low-pressure area over the Bay of Bengal became well-marked on Saturday, Andhra Pradesh did not record any major rainfall activity on Saturday (October 24).
Only two districts, YSR Kadapa and Anantapur, received widespread moderate showers on Saturday. The neighbouring districts in Rayalaseema and South Coastal Andhra Pradesh recorded light showers, while the coastal places in central and northern A.P. did not record any rainfall in the day.
Rainfall recorded in various stations between 8.30 a.m. and 5 p.m. is as follows: Simhadripuram in YSR Kadapa district: 81.5 mm, Malapuram in Anantapur: 74.5 mm, Vennapusapalle in Anantapur: 50.5 mm, Undabanda in Anantapur district: 47.5 mm, Jangamreddipalle in YSR Kadapa: 45.15 mm.
The other places, mostly in these two districts, and isolated places in the districts of Chittoor, SPSR Nellore, Prakasam and West Godavari recorded rainfall of below 40 mm.
In a cyclonic storm, the associated maximum sustained wind is 62 km to 88 km per hour, and in a severe cyclonic storm, it is between 89 kmph and 117 kmph.
According to the weather update, the State may continue to record light showers on October 25 and 26, and much of the cyclone-induced rainfall activity would begin on October 27.
Red alert
A red alert has been issued for the coastal districts of Krishna and Bapatla on October 27, and the same has been issued for the districts of Visakhapatnam, Alluri Sitharama Raju (ASR), Anakapalli, Kakinada, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Konaseema, East Godavari, West Godavari, Eluru, NTR, Krishna, Guntur and Bapatla on October 28. Isolated extremely heavy rainfall is expected in these districts on October 27 and 28.
Published – October 25, 2026 12:01 pm IST
