Cyclone Michaung impacts Godavari districts; massive evacuations underway
Kakinada: The impact of Tropical Cyclone Michaung was felt in the two Godavari districts on Monday while normal life was thrown asunder. All cargo operations have been suspended and ships have been anchored at deep sea in Bay of Bengal with a distance of 100 nautical miles from Anchorage Port at Kakinada.
Port officials issued 9 number signal at the port and they asked for a stop to all trade activities till the weakening of the cyclone.
The district administrations of Kakinada, Dr Ambedkar Konaseema, Eluru, East and West Godavari have taken steps to face the cyclone storm and instructed officials to evacuate people in low-lying areas.
Around 1,000 people have been evacuated from low-lying areas to rehabilitation centres in Kakinada and Dr Ambedkar Konaseema districts. In Kakinada district, 350 people from Hope Island and 235 from U. Kothapalli mandal were evacuated to rehabilitation centres, while 400 were evacuated in Konaseema. Meanwhile, many from Bhairavapalem were not keen on being evacuated from their village. People from Vasalathippa in Uppalaguptam mandal, Mogasanithippa in Katrenikona mandal, G. Mulapolem in I.Polavaram mandal and N. Rameswaram from Allavarm mandal were evacuated and shifted to safer places.
Waves have been rising above 3 metres between the Kakinada and Uppada beach road, where traffic movement has been suspended.
Kakinada district collector Kritika Shukla said that the impact of the cyclone may have fallen on Kakinada as it centred 300 kilometres from the city. This will result in huge gales and heavy rains in the Kakinada coast. She instructed officials to shift pregnant women to hospitals and evacuate people from low-lying areas and ensure that fishermen do not venture into the sea until the cyclone crosses the coast.
West Godavari district collector P. Prashanthi has taken special steps to help the farmers. She engaged labourers under NREGS to shift the harvested paddy into safer places and rice mills. said that all precautionary steps are being taken in the district in view of the cyclone. She said that the government has released 'two crore for cyclone relief measures. She said that the impact of the cyclone may be high in Palakollu, Palakoderu and Bhimavaram mandals. Prashanthi said that agriculture officials have diverted water from the fields in 257 acres so as to avoid stagnation and inundation. This helped save 10,441 quintals of paddy while 8,553 quintals of paddy was shifted to rice mills and safer places.
East Godavari district collector K. Madhavi Latha said that there could be moderate to heavy rains in the next 48 hours. As a precautionary measure, schools will remain closed for two days.
APEPDCL’s erstwhile East Godavari operation circle superintendent T.V.S.N. Murthy has advised people to far from electricity lines as there was a possibility of live wires.
Yanam MLA Gollapalli Ashok urged the people to reach cyclone rehabilitation centres as the impact of this cyclone was significantly more impactful than the 1996 cyclone in Konaseema.
