Cyclone Arnab makes landfall in India’s Andhra Pradesh

SaveSharefacebookxwhatsapp-strokecopylinkA man walks past destruction caused in Kakinada, India, after Cyclone Arnab crossed the Andhra Pradesh coast on Wednesday, October 28 [Mahesh Kumar A/AP]By Al Jazeera Staff, AFP and ReutersPublished On 28 Oct 202628 Oct 2026Cyclone Arnab has made landfall on India’s east coast, causing widespread damage and bringing heavy rainfall and wind speeds of up to 135kph (84mph).Trees fell onto highways and power supplies were disrupted after Arnab crossed into Andhra Pradesh early on Wednesday morning.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4More than 100 foreign trekkers stranded by floods in Nepal’s Gorkha regionlist 2 of 4Rescue efforts continue as Nepal-China flood death toll rises to 1,280list 3 of 4Why Nepal is demanding climate justice and compensation after deadly floodslist 4 of 4India evacuates tens of thousands as ‘very severe’ Cyclone Arnab nearsend of listAt least 180,000 people were evacuated from Andhra Pradesh and Odisha states a day earlier. Flights and train services were cancelled, and some schools were forced to close.A vehicle damaged by a fallen tree following Cyclone Arnab, in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India, on October 28 [Stringer/Reuters]Authorities say more than 12 million people live in the cyclone’s expected path.No casualties have been reported so far.One resident of Kakinada district in Andhra Pradesh, which lies in the storm’s path, said: “No one knew whose house the water would rush into next or whose home would be submerged.”India’s Meteorological Department forecast a storm surge of up to 1.5m above the tide level, warning that it was likely to submerge low-lying areas in Andhra Pradesh.Motorcyclists navigate floodwaters in Kakinada, India, on Wednesday, October 28, 2026 [Mahesh Kumar A/AP]‘Very severe cyclonic storm’Arnab made landfall as a “very severe cyclonic storm” – the third-highest category on its scale, before being downgraded to “severe” after moving further inland.In neighbouring Nepal, authorities warned tourists on Tuesday not to enter high-altitude areas over fears Arnab could trigger torrential downpours, snowstorms and avalanches from Thursday through to Saturday.Reuters news agency reported that authorities suspended issuing trekking permits for three days.This is peak hiking season in Nepal, with about 750 hikers receiving permits daily.Nepal is still recovering from a catastrophic glacial mountain collapse in August, which killed more than 1,400 people and left at least 5,000 missing.Sri Lanka has also closed schools, with its Department of Meteorology warning the storm could trigger flash floods and landslides.