Cyclone Murasu Crosses Andhra Pradesh Coast, Weakening Expected by Midnight

The eye of severe cyclonic storm Murasu crossed the Andhra Pradesh coast at 5:30 a.m. on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, with its rear end continuing to make landfall, a Met Department official confirmed to The Hindu. The cyclone, which has brought torrential rains to several parts of the state, is expected to weaken gradually into a cyclonic storm by Tuesday noon, with wind speeds up to 90 kmph and gusts up to 100 kmph. It is then forecast to subside into a deep depression by Tuesday midnight, with wind speeds reaching up to 75 kmph.

In the past six hours, Murasu moved north to northwestwards at a speed of 8 kmph, centering over South Coastal Andhra Pradesh at 8:30 a.m. The Visakhapatnam-based Cyclone Warning Centre (CWC) and Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) reported its location at 8:30 a.m. as 30 km north to northeast of Ongole, 40 km southwest of Bapatla, 90 km north to northeast of Kavali, 100 km south to southwest of Vijayawada, and 120 km west to southwest of Machilipatnam.

The cyclone has already caused significant damage. A tree fell across Dreams School Road in Ongole, and the statue of Andhra Kesari Tanguturi Prakasam Panthulu in the Prakasam district Collectorate premises in Ongole also collapsed due to heavy rain and strong winds. Several thatched houses in Samatha Nagar, Ongole, Prakasam district, collapsed, leaving residents stranded, prompting the district administration to initiate rescue operations.

Rainfall has been substantial across the affected regions. Bapatla recorded the heaviest rain in the state, with 213.16 mm in the 24 hours leading up to 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, according to automatic weather stations of the Andhra Pradesh Directorate of Economics and Statistics (APDES). Naguluppalapadu in Prakasam district received 198.01 mm. Of the 61 gauges that crossed 100 mm, 57 were located in Bapatla, Prakasam, and West Godavari districts. By 11 a.m., rain had moved inland, with Gurijepalli in Prakasam district recording 71.5 mm and Nandigama in NTR district 50.5 mm.

In response to the emergency, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu instructed officials to prioritize preventing loss of lives and ensuring drinking water, power supply, and road connectivity. The state government's Real Time Governance Society (RTGS) launched a dedicated grievance reporting mechanism through its 'Mana Mitra' WhatsApp Governance platform (9552300009). Residents in cyclone-hit regions can report emergencies like power outages, uprooted trees, collapsed walls, and waterlogging directly to the administration for prompt intervention.

The Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) expects heavy to very heavy rainfall, with isolated extremely heavy rainfall, in Bapatla, Guntur, Krishna, Palnadu, NTR, Eluru, and West Godavari districts today, November 3, 2026, and moderate to isolated heavy rainfall on November 4, 2026. Approximately 10,805 people are currently accommodated in relief centers. Crop damage estimates include about 30,661 hectares of paddy, 21,474 hectares of cotton, and 605 hectares of maize. The Energy Department has deployed special response teams to restore power, and some trains have been diverted or rescheduled. Inflows to the Nagarjuna Sagar Pulichintala dam are forecast to increase, peaking at 5,000 Cusecs on November 5 and declining to 1,800 Cusecs by November 7, while the Pulichintala dam expects a peak of 29,000 Cusecs on November 5.

What to watch: The ongoing relief operations and the forecast for further weakening of the storm.

Editor's note: The draft is thorough and well-organized, accurately capturing the cyclone's status, impact, and government response.