Heavy rains lash south and east India coasts as they brace for powerful storm

Heavy rain and strong winds pelted India’s southern and eastern coastlines on Monday and states were put on high alert after a deep depression over the Bay of Bengal intensified into a powerful storm, authorities said.

IMD chief Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said that, based on its current trajectory, the storm could make landfall on Tuesday afternoon close to Bapatla in Andhra Pradesh state.

The Andhra Pradesh state government shut schools on Monday, while authorities in Tamil Nadu declared a public holiday in four districts that are likely to bear the brunt of the downpours.

The Hindu newspaper reported that officials evacuated nearly 2,000 people from coastal and low-lying villages in Andhra Pradesh state, with instructions to move more than 7,000 more to safer areas.

In Tamil Nadu’s capital, Chennai, heavy rain submerged roads and cars and flooded parts of the city.

Members of India’s National Disaster Response Force were evacuating those in low-lying areas of the city, local media reported.

The state government said over the weekend that it had deployed its own disaster response force and set up nearly 5,000 relief camps in coastal areas.

Tamil Nadu’s chief minister, MK Stalin, said the state is ready to face the storm, with authorities deployed to vulnerable areas, and asked the public to stay indoors until it subsides.