One killed, several injured as Cyclone Montha hits Andhra Pradesh, wreaks havoc
PTC News Desk: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) announced early Wednesday that severe cyclonic storm Montha had weakened into a cyclonic storm after making landfall along the Andhra Pradesh coast, bringing heavy rainfall and strong winds to several coastal districts.
In its 2:30 a.m. bulletin, the IMD said, “The Severe Cyclonic Storm Montha over coastal Andhra Pradesh moved northwestward at a speed of 10 kmph and weakened into a Cyclonic Storm.” The system was located about 20 km west-northwest of Narsapur, 50 km northeast of Machilipatnam, and 90 km west-southwest of Kakinada.
The storm’s movement is being closely monitored using Doppler radars stationed at Machilipatnam and Visakhapatnam.
Officials noted that the weakening of the storm was consistent with earlier forecasts, as it began to lose intensity after moving inland. Heavy rains and strong winds continued to lash the districts of West Godavari, Krishna, and East Godavari, with flood warnings issued for low-lying areas.
Earlier, Cyclone Montha had crossed the Andhra Pradesh and Yanam coasts between Machilipatnam and Kalingapatnam during the early hours of Wednesday, the IMD added.
“The latest observations indicate that the severe cyclonic storm ‘Montha’ has crossed the Andhra Pradesh and Yanan coasts between Machilipatnam and Kalingapatnam, to the south of Kakinada,” the IMD said in a post on X, confirming the landfall process had been completed shortly after midnight.
- PTC NEWS
