Cyclone Arnab made landfall along India's Andhra Pradesh coast early Wednesday, bringing powerful winds and heavy rainfall after authorities evacuated nearly 89,000 people from vulnerable coastal areas.
Prakhar Jain, head of the state's disaster management authority, said the cyclone had weakened slightly before landfall but continued to pack maximum winds of up to 185 kph (115 mph). Heavy to very heavy rainfall affected several coastal districts, disrupting normal life.
Officials expected the storm to weaken further as it moved inland, with wind speeds forecast to drop to around 110 kph (68 mph) later in the day. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) warned that heavy rain and strong winds would continue in coastal Andhra Pradesh and parts of neighbouring southern Odisha for the next four hours.
“The tip of the system has already entered the land mass and the entire process will take around four hours,” IMD chief Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said.
Cyclone Arnab intensified into a very severe cyclonic storm late Tuesday, bringing strong gusts and heavy rain to coastal areas as it moved across the Bay of Bengal.
Authorities placed all coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh on high alert and evacuated residents from low-lying and flood-prone areas. Some train services were also cancelled as adverse weather conditions began affecting the coast.
According to an official statement, at least 89,000 people had been evacuated in Andhra Pradesh by Wednesday.
Jain said more than 2,000 cyclone shelters had been established across 20 districts, while emergency alerts were being sent to millions of mobile phone users, the Press Trust of India reported.
Authorities also secured more than 30,000 fishing boats along the coast and deployed nearly 1,100 medical teams to provide emergency assistance.
More than 12 million people live along the cyclone's projected path, according to the state's disaster management authority.
In neighbouring Odisha, officials planned to evacuate around 48,000 people from areas expected to be affected by the storm.