Cyclone Michaung: Landfall likely between Andhra's Nellore & Machilipatnam today

Cyclone Michaung which lay centred over the west coast of the Bay of Bengal off south Andhra Pradesh and adjoining north Tamil Nadu coasts on Monday is likely to cross the south Andhra Pradesh coast between Nellore and Machilipatnam on Tuesday morning in the form of a severe cyclonic storm the weather department informedThe Severe Cyclonic Storm MICHAUNG over Westcentral and adjoining Southwest Bay of Bengal off south Andhra Pradesh and adjoining north Tamil Nadu coasts moved NNW with a speed of 12 kmph during the past 6 hours and lay centred at 830 am on December 4 over WC Bay of Bengal off south Andhra Pradesh and adjoining north Tamil Nadu coasts about 50 km southeast of Nellore 130 km north of Chennai 180 km south of Bapatla and 200 km southsouthwest of Machilipatnam read a post on the official X handle of the India Meteorological Department IMD on MondayIt is likely to move nearly northwards parallel and close to the south Andhra Pradesh coast and cross the south Andhra Pradesh coast between Nellore and Machilipatnam close to Bapatla during the forenoon of December 5 as a severe cyclonic storm with a maximum sustained wind speed of 90100 kmph gusting to 110 kmph the IMD stated further in its postMeanwhile Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Monday made enquiries on the damage wrought by the heavy showers amid the approaching cyclone while also taking stock of the ongoing relief and rescue operations and the states preparedness to deal with the immediate aftermath of the stormThe CM also enquired about the food and other facilities provided to civilians sheltered in relief camps during a phone call to state ministers Sekar Babu KN Nehru and EV Velu and DMK MLAs Dr Ezhilan Karunanidhi E Parandaman and S Arvind RameshThe progress of the cyclone is being tracked closely and its potential impact assessed police said on Monday adding that the approaching storm has already claimed five lives and injured one in separate incidents across ChennaiSeveral trees lay uprooted as strong winds swept the state and the daily lives of locals were impacted as they had to grapple with extensive waterlogging and allied woes in the southern stateEarlier in the day officials announced that the Chennai airfield would remain closed until 9 am on Tuesday due to the approaching cyclonic stormAirfield closed for arrival and departure operations till 0900 hrs IST tomorrow due to adverse weather conditions the Chennai airport authority informed through a post on XSubways have been closed due to severe waterlogging in Chennai the police informed further adding that traffic movement was also suspended from Manjambakkam to Vadaperumbakkam Road because of the release of water from Puzhal LakeDDRT Teams are available in all vulnerable areas and they are working in coordination with the GCC and Highways Department the police informed further on XThe IMD earlier warned of heavy to very heavy rainfall on Monday and Tuesday in northcoastal Tamil Nadu and PuducherryLight to moderate rainfall at most places and heavy to very heavy rainfall at a few places with extremely heavy falls at isolated places over coastal Andhra Pradesh and Yanam is expected on December 4 and 5 the agency informed earlierPublic life was severely affected in Chennai as heavy rains lashed several parts of the city Several areas including Wallajah Road Mount Road Anna Salai Chepauk outside Omandurar government multispecialty hospital and other lowlying areas were inundated due to persistent heavy rainfallChennais popular Marina Beach was flooded in the wake of the downpours while roads linking Mount Road to Marina Beach were blocked due to severe waterloggingThe state government advised people to take precautionary measures as the IMD issued a red alert for the state predicting heavy to very heavy rainfall in Chennai and neighbouring areasEarlier Prime Minister Narendra Modi also spoke to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy and took stock of the preparations to tackle Cyclone Michaung officials said adding that the former assured all help to the latter in dealing with the aftermath of the cycloneThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever