Fresh Bay Weather System Forecast as Arnab Weakens and Spreads Rains Across States

UPDATE - follow-up to Cyclone Arnab LIVE: New Bay system likely to head for Andhra coast; 300 villages marooned in Ganjam: A new low-pressure area over the south Andaman Sea is likely to strengthen into a depression by October 31 and move towards the Andhra Pradesh coast. Meanwhile, Cyclone Arnab has weakened into a depression and spread heavy rains across West Bengal, Jharkhand, and Madhya Pradesh.

Impact and Relief

In Odisha's Ganjam district, about 2,000 people are cut off by floodwater, and the State plans to airlift villagers using Coast Guard helicopters once low clouds clear. More than 200 villages in Ganjam and Gajapati districts are badly hit, and a stretch of National Highway 326 has been washed away. Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke with the Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, and Puducherry to assure them of all help. In Andhra Pradesh, Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu wrote to the Union Home Minister to request a central damage assessment team, while officials reported seven deaths in the state due to cyclone incidents.

Transport and Rivers

Train services faced major disruptions as the swollen Bahuda river forced the East Coast Railway to cancel nine trains and divert 14 on the Howrah-Chennai route, with water flowing above the danger mark at two railway bridges. Operations at three airports in Andhra Pradesh were also suspended by the Civil Aviation Ministry. Rivers across Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, and Parvathipuram Manyam swelled, and a lineman died during repair work in Vizianagaram.

Context

Cyclonic storms frequently form in the Bay of Bengal during the post-monsoon months, bringing heavy rainfall and strong winds to India's eastern coastline. Weather departments maintain continuous radar surveillance during these events to track wind speeds and rainfall patterns as systems move inland.