Severe Cyclone Murasu triggers school closures and emergency alerts as Andhra Pradesh braces for landfall

UPDATE - follow-up to Cyclone Murasu LIVE updates: System intensifies into 'Severe Cyclonic Storm', to make landfall on Nov. 3 morning: Severe Cyclonic Storm Murasu over the West Central and Southwest Bay of Bengal has triggered widespread administrative preparations, emergency deployments, and school closures across multiple states.

Closures And Alerts

Chennai and Tiruvallur District Collectors announced the closure of schools and colleges on Monday due to heavy rain. Guntur District Collector C.M. Saikanth Varma declared that all Anganwadi centres, schools, and junior colleges in Guntur district will remain closed on Monday under all managements. Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department issued an orange alert for six districts and a yellow alert for five districts in Telangana for Monday.

Landfall And Deployment

According to the India Meteorological Department, Murasu is expected to move northwestwards and cross the south Andhra Pradesh coast near Ongole and between Nellore and Narsapur on November 3 morning, packing wind speeds of 100 to 110 kmph gusting to 120 kmph, with a possibility of further intensification into a very severe cyclonic storm. The Andhra Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority deployed six National Disaster Response Force teams and seven State Disaster Response Force teams in vulnerable districts, stationing two teams each in Krishna, Bapatla, Guntur, Nellore, and Prakasam, and one team each in Markapuram, Palnadu, and Tirupati.

Context

Coastal districts in peninsular India frequently face severe cyclonic storms during the post-monsoon season, requiring extensive advance coordination between meteorological agencies and district disaster relief administrations. Emergency helplines and proactive district-level precautions help minimise loss of life and property during such high-velocity weather events.