Cyclone Murasu Hits India’s Andhra Pradesh Coast

Cyclone Murasu brings 120kph winds to Andhra Coast

A powerful cyclone named Murasu has begun making landfall along India’s Andhra Pradesh coast, bringing heavy rain and strong winds, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

The landfall process began around midnight on Monday near Ongole in Prakasam district, with the cyclone reaching the coast at around 1am local time, the weather agency said.

The storm has brought heavy to extremely heavy rainfall to several parts of Andhra Pradesh, accompanied by winds of 110–120 kilometres per hour.

In a statement, the IMD said the cyclone’s leading cloud bands had already moved onto the coast, while its trailing portion remained close to the shoreline.

At around 1:30am local time, the cyclone was positioned over the west-central Bay of Bengal near the southern Andhra Pradesh coast. It was approximately 40 kilometres southeast of Ongole, 60 kilometres northeast of Kavali and 70 kilometres south of Bapatla, according to the weather agency.

The IMD forecast that the cyclone would complete its landfall near Ongole, between Nellore and Narsapur. Gusty winds of 110–120 kilometres per hour were expected to continue along coastal areas until morning.

Heavy rainfall was forecast to persist in coastal southern Andhra Pradesh for the next 12 hours.

The weather agency also warned of a storm surge approximately 1–1.5 metres above the normal astronomical tide. The surge could inundate low-lying coastal areas of southern Andhra Pradesh through Wednesday morning.

Bapatla, Krishna and Prakasam districts were identified as areas at particular risk from the storm surge.