9 killed, thousands evacuated as cyclone Michaung makes landfall in India

• Cyclone expected to complete landfall in next 2 hours.
• Child among those killed amid heavy rains hours before landfall.
• People evacuated from seven districts in Andhra Pradesh.

At least nine people have been killed Tuesday while 9,454 others have been evacuated as severe cyclone Michaung makes landfall near Bapatla on the southern coast of Andhra Pradesh, NDTV reported.

According to an official, the weather system over the west-central Bay of Bengal, running along and off Andhra Pradesh’s southern coast, is moving northwards parallel to the coast and is expected to complete the crossing within the next two hours.

“Severe cyclonic storm Michaung is currently making landfall close to Bapatla. It is expected to complete its landfall in the next two hours. It is expected to complete crossing by 2pm,” an Amaravati Meteorological Centre official told Press Trust of India (PTI).

The intensity of gales near the severe cyclonic storm’s centre is gusting up to 110 km/h and reaching intensities of 90–100 km/h, according to the meteorological centre.

Heavy rains earlier on Tuesday caused highways in southern India to flood, killing at least nine people — including a four-year-old boy — and wreaking devastation only hours before the Michaung cyclone was supposed to make landfall, Reuters reported.

Officials revealed that the child died in Tirupati district after a wall fell while eight people were killed in neighbouring Tamil Nadu state.

Meanwhile, 9,454 people have been evacuated from the seven districts of Konaseema, Kakinada, Krishna, Bapatla and Prakasam to safety in 211 relief camps, according to NDTV citing a dataset shared by the Andhra Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority (APSDMA).

The state government evacuated 910 people from Konaseema district, 523 from Kakinada, 1,814 from Krishna, 702 from Bapatla, 128 from Prakasam, 1,991 from Nellore and 3,386 from Tirupati.

As part of relief efforts, 10,251 food packets and 18,068 water packets were distributed among affectees.