Andhra, Odisha bear brunt as Montha makes landfall

Severe Cyclonic storm, Montha, crossed the coast off Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday. The impact was also felt in the neighbouring state of Odisha, where normal life was affected in 15 districts.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) reported that the process of landfall started around 7 pm. It further said the weather system in the Bay of Bengal will cross Andhra Pradesh coast between Machilipatnam and Kalingapatnam around Kakinada with a maximum sustained wind speed of 90 to 100 kmph and gusting up to 110 kmph.

Earlier in the day, the IMD had issued heavy rain alerts for Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, West Bengal along the Indian east and southeast coast due to the deep depression over the Bay of Bengal that intensified into a cyclonic storm, Montha, on Sunday.

“A total of 26 NDRF teams were deployed across Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Puducherry, Telangana, Chhattisgarh and Tamil Nadu,” the NDRF had said.