Cyclone ‘Arnab’ LIVE updates | Five killed in Andhra; ₹5 lakh ex gratia for families

Cyclone Arnab crossed the Andhra Pradesh and Yanam coasts about 20 km east-northeast of Narsapur early on Wednesday (October 28, 2026). It has since weakened from a very severe to a severe cyclonic storm, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.

It is expected to lose most of its strength by tonight. Five people have died in cyclone-related incidents in Andhra Pradesh, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu said. Their families will get ₹5 lakh each. About 57,000 people have been moved to relief camps, according to the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF).

Mr. Naidu has written to Union Home Minister Amit Shah seeking a Central team to assess the damage. Paddy on about 70,900 hectares and horticulture crops on 10,450 hectares are under water or damaged, and about 180 houses have been hit, the letter says.

Power supply to over 25 lakh connections was cut in north and central Andhra. A total of 38 flights have been cancelled at the Visakhapatnam airport and 17 services at Vijayawada. Cyclone Arnab devastates north Andhra with extreme rains, 150 km/h winds, 1,000+ uprooted trees, major crop losses, and urgent relief announced.

Rainfall eases as Arnab makes landfall, temperatures rise across Keralam, with a dry spell and uncertain Bay of Bengal system impact ahead. evere cyclonic storm Arnab, centred near the Andhra Pradesh coast at 2.30 pm on October 28, is expected to weaken into a cyclonic storm by evening and a deep depression by night.

The system is likely to move north-northwestwards over the next 48 hours, with the Machilipatnam Doppler Weather Radar keeping it under continuous surveillance. Cyclone Arnab killed five people in Andhra Pradesh, Chief Minister N.

Chandrababu Naidu said at a press conference in Amaravati on Wednesday. Their families will get ₹5 lakh each.Two of the deceased were from the Visakhapatnam region: one died when a tree fell on a power line, another when an electric pole collapsed.

A man in Bhimavaram died after a palm tree fell on him. A woman in Anakapalli district was electrocuted. Another woman at Sakretipalli died when a wall collapsed on the vehicle she was travelling in. Families whose houses were flooded will get 25 kg of rice, or 50 kg for fishermen and handloom weavers, along with pulses, onions, sugar, potatoes and palm oil.People in relief camps will get ₹1,000 each, up to ₹3,000 per family.

Owners of partly damaged houses will get ₹10,000. Affected farmers will get ₹25,000 a hectare for paddy, cotton, groundnut and sugarcane, Mr. Naidu said. Chief Minister said he will visit Konaseema or West Godavari district on Thursday.

The storm was still lingering near the coast at 2.30 p.m. on Wednesday, about 40 km north of Narsapur and 40 km west of Yanam, the IMD said. It has been creeping north at about 7 kmph, covering about 40 km in six hours. The Met department expects it to weaken this evening and to lose most of its force by tonight.

It will keep drifting north-northwest over the next two days. Fallen trees disrupted traffic and power lines across Anakapalli district on Wednesday. Munagapaka mandal had 16 trees down and Yelamanchili 14. Atchutapuram, Sabbavaram, Kotavuratla and Makavarapalem also reported several each.

Teams from the Revenue, Roads and Buildings, Fire Services and power departments are clearing the roads and restoring supply.- V. Kamalakara Rao Cyclone Arnab cut power to 25.33 lakh homes, shops and other non-farm connections across 11 districts served by the Andhra Pradesh Eastern Power Distribution Company Limited (APEPDCL), officials told The Hindu on Wednesday.

Another 94,439 farm connections in 4,016 villages were also hit. By the evening, supply had been restored to about 6.38 lakh non-farm connections, a quarter of those affected, and to 1,874 villages. The storm brought down 6,270 electric poles and damaged 374 distribution transformers.

All but seven of the company’s 477 substations were affected; 203 of them are working again. The damage to power installations is estimated at ₹11.69 crore. About 6,670 workers in 582 teams are on the job. People have been asked not to touch snapped lines or fallen poles and to report problems on the toll-free number 1912.

Fallen electric poles and tangled power lines block a street at Doctors Colony near MVP Colony in Visakhapatnam on Wednesday.