Visakhapatnam: Heavy rains lashed many parts of north coastal Andhra Pradesh and a few areas of south coastal AP on Friday, leading to waterlogging on roads and traffic snarls.
India Meteorological Department (IMD) has sounded for Saturday an orange alert (heavy to very heavy rains) for five coastal districts of Srikakulam, Manyam, Alluri Sitarama Raju (ASR), Eluru and NTR districts and yellow alert (heavy rains) for districts including Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram, Anakapalli, Kakinada, Yanam, East Godavari, Konaseema, West Godavari, Krishna, Guntur, Bapatla, Palnadu, Prakasam, Nandyal, Kurnool and Anantapur.
Squally weather, with wind speeds reaching 35 kmph to 45 kmph gusting to 55 kmph, is likely along and off Andhra Pradesh coast and Yanam.
IMD-Amaravati director S. Stella said low-pressure area over west central and adjoining northwest Bay of Bengal off north Andhra Pradesh and south Odisha moved west, north-westwards. This became a well-marked low pressure area over the same region on Friday. It is likely to move further west, north-westwards towards north Andhra Pradesh and adjoining south Odisha coasts.
It will intensify into a depression over west central and adjoining northwest Bay of Bengal during the next 36 hours. Under its impact, heavy to very heavy rainfall will occur at isolated places in five districts and heavy rainfall will occur in fifteen districts till September 4, Stella stated.
She said Kalingapatnam in Srikakulam district recorded the highest rainfall (8 cm) between Thursday and Friday morning, followed by 4 cm rainfall each in Macherla (Palnadu), Bapatla, Gudivada (Krishna), Repalle (Bapatla) and Chinturu (ASR), and 3 cm each in Jangamaheswarapuram (Palnadu), Vijayawada (NTR), Anakapalli, Prakasam Barrage (NTR district), Tekkali (Srikakulam) and Kunavaram (ASR).
Parts of the Rayalaseema region recorded rainfall between 1 cm and 2 cm.
