Bhubaneswar: Very severe cyclonic storm 'Arnab' crossed the Andhra Pradesh and Yanam coasts with maximum sustained wind speeds of 125-135 kmph and gusts reaching 150 kmph between 2 am and 8 am on Wednesday, October 28, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.

The cyclone crossed the coast southwest of Yanam, near latitude 16.45°N and longitude 81.9°E. The landfall location was about 20 km east-northeast of Narsapur, 40 km southwest of Yanam and 60 km southwest of Kakinada.

The landfall process has been completed, with the cyclone's central region moving entirely over land. The system weakened into a severe cyclonic storm at 8.30 am, with wind speeds of 110-120 kmph and gusts reaching 135 kmph, according to the IMD's latest bulletin.

At 8.30 am, the centre of the cyclone lay over the Andhra Pradesh and Yanam coasts near latitude 16.5°N and longitude 81.9°E. It was located about 20 km east-northeast of Narsapur, 40 km southwest of Yanam and 60 km southwest of Kakinada. The system was also 90 km east-northeast of Machilipatnam, 120 km east of Gannavaram and 120 km southwest of Tuni.

The IMD said the cyclone was likely to move north-northeastwards during the next 48 hours and weaken gradually. It was forecasted to weaken into a cyclonic storm within the next six hours and further downgrade into a deep depression during the subsequent six hours.

Heavy rain in Andhra Pradesh, Odisha

The cyclone has triggered heavy to extremely heavy rainfall in several parts of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. According to IMD observations up to 8.30 am on Wednesday, Visakhapatnam-Waltair recorded 315 mm of rainfall, followed by Vizianagaram at 301 mm, Anakapalli at 275 mm, Srikakulam at 257 mm and Krishna at 223 mm in Andhra Pradesh.

In Odisha, Koraput recorded 188 mm of rainfall, followed by Ganjam at 161 mm and Gajapati at 135 mm.

Storm surge warning for Andhra Pradesh

The IMD warned that a storm surge of around one metre above the astronomical tide was likely to inundate low-lying areas of Andhra Pradesh during the next three to five hours. The inundation height was expected to reduce to around 0.5 metre during the subsequent six hours.