Cyclone Arnab hits India's Andhra Pradesh state as tens of thousands are
evacuated
[October 28, 2026]
By MAHESH KUMAR and OMER FAROOQ
KAKINADA, India (AP) — Cyclone Arnab dumped heavy rain across India ’s
eastern Andhra Pradesh state and caused extensive damage in some areas
Wednesday after tens of thousands of people were evacuated from
vulnerable coastal areas.
Prakhar Jain, head of the state’s disaster management authority, said
the cyclone had weakened slightly before landfall earlier in the day but
brought heavy to very heavy rainfall to several coastal districts,
triggering widespread disruption in affected areas. No casualties were
reported and damage was being assessed.
State disaster management officials said late Wednesday morning that
wind speeds were up to 135 kph (84 mph).
Officials said the cyclone was expected to weaken further as it moved
inland, with wind speeds likely to ease later in the day.
The cyclone left a trail of destruction across the state’s fertile
Konaseema district, which officials said was the worst hit so far.
Banana and coconut plantations suffered extensively and a large number
of trees and electricity poles were uprooted, disrupting electricity
across the district, officials said.
Fallen trees blocked several roads, and disaster management workers
rushed to clear roads and restore connectivity. About 6,000 electric
poles were uprooted in Konaseema alone, officials said.
The India Meteorological Department said the landfall process was
complete and heavy rainfall as well as strong winds would continue under
the cyclone's influence in coastal areas of Andhra Pradesh and parts of
southern Odisha state. The rainfall flooded several low-lying areas of
the port city of Visakhapatnam.
Cyclone Arnab weakened to a "severe" cyclonic storm Wednesday, the
department said in an update.
Arnab’s outer bands first began lashing parts of the Andhra Pradesh
coast late Tuesday as the storm intensified over the Bay of Bengal and
moved toward an earlier-than-expected landfall.
Authorities began evacuating people from low-lying and flood-prone areas
ahead of the cyclone's landfall. They also canceled some train services
as heavy rain and gusty winds started lashing parts of the coast. At
least 89,000 people were evacuated in Andhra Pradesh, according to an
official statement.
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Motorists navigate floodwaters at Kakinada, India, as Cyclone Arnab
crossed the Andhra Pradesh coast in the early hours of Wednesday,
Oct. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Mahesh Kumar A.)
The state’s disaster management authority said more than 12 million
people live along the cyclone’s expected path.
Authorities set up over 2,000 cyclone shelters across 20 districts,
while emergency alerts were being sent to the mobile phones of millions
of residents, Jain said, according to the Press Trust of India news
agency. More than 30,000 fishing boats were secured along the coast,
while nearly 1,100 medical teams were deployed across affected areas to
provide emergency assistance, he added.
In neighboring Odisha, officials planned to evacuate about 48,000 people
from areas likely to be affected by the storm.
Meanwhile, Nepal’s disaster agency has warned of heavy rain, lightning
and thunderstorms across much of the country, with heavy snowfall,
snowstorms and avalanches expected in the country’s northern Himalayan
region from late Thursday due to the cyclone affecting neighboring
India.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority advised
tourists to avoid high-altitude and Himalayan areas and warned of
possible road and air travel disruptions.
The warning comes as Nepal continues to recover from devastating flash
floods in August that killed more than 1,400 people and left thousands
more missing. More flooding was reported earlier this month in northern
Nepal.
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Farooq reported from Hyderabad, India. Binaj Gurubacharya in Kathmandu,
Nepal, contributed to this report.
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