In brief
Cyclone Murasu hit Andhra Pradesh’s coast on 2 November 2026, following Cyclone Arnab a week earlier. The storm toppled trees, damaged power lines, flooded low‐lying areas and forced the evacuation of about 30,000 people. Central and state authorities have mobilised disaster relief while the region faces the largest cyclone in 14 years.
On the early hours of 2 November 2026, Cyclone Murasu made landfall on the eastern coast of India, striking the state of Andhra Pradesh and revealing the cumulative toll of two consecutive cyclonic events in just a week. According to the India Meteorological Department, the storm touched down near Ongole in Prakasam district at roughly one a.m. local time, bringing with it heavy to very heavy rains across several districts.
The destructive wind and rainfall swept across Prakasam and Bapatla districts, uprooting thousands of trees, toppling hundreds of electricity poles, and sending fishing boats ashore. Standing crops suffered extensive damage, and many low‑lying villages found themselves underwater for hours. The scale of physical damage contrasted starkly with the fact that no deaths or injuries had been reported at the time of the initial reporting.
Prakhar Jain, the managing director of the Andhra Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority, confirmed the extent of the damage in a statement to Reuters, noting that some trees and power poles had been uprooted. He added that the agency was working to relocate residents from the most vulnerable areas.
In response to the looming threat, the state government began evacuating residents on Monday, moving roughly 30,000 people to safer locations. The decision was driven by the emergency management authority’s data on flood risk and the recent damage seen after the earlier Cyclone Arnab. Krishna‑Mahaa, a fisherman from Kothapatnam in Prakasam, shared the experience of the evacuation through PTI, describing how about 400 families from his village were moved out before the storm struck and how the damage to fishing boats compounded their loss.
Across the government chain, the central authority’s engagement has been swift. On X, Home Minister Amit Shah tweeted that he had spoken to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu regarding the cyclone’s impact. Shah’s message assured the state of Central Government assistance and support, highlighting that both national and state disaster response teams were already on the ground. The tweet illustrated a rapid governmental response to potential disaster mismanagement and the need for public accountability in emergency response.
IMD’s forecast declared Andhra Pradesh to be the hardest hit state, with Tamil Nadu also at risk of severe rain and potential damage. The early warnings issued on the morning of the landfall underscored the potential for widespread disruption to public utilities, transport routes, and the supply chain for food and water in the affected districts.
Local officials also emphasized the need to restore electricity and communications in the wounded areas. By the afternoon, several power poles were reported down, causing outages that could cripple local communities’ access to medical supplies and emergency aid.
The arrival of the cyclone—just weeks after Cyclone Arnab slammed into the same region—has raised concerns about the resilience of infrastructure and the adequacy of disaster preparedness. The repeated assaults on the same coastal belt have called into question the effectiveness of both local and national plans for mobilising resources, evacuating populations, and providing post‑storm relief.
On the civic front, officials in the emergency ministry were dispatched to coordinate relief efforts, triage hospitals, and ensure that relief funds could be disbursed promptly to those affected. Reports from relief agencies indicate that water supplies, food aid, and temporary shelter are being deployed, but the scale of the disaster has stretched logistical capacities thin.
In the days following the landfall, the government began reviewing the disaster management plan in Andhra Pradesh. Local NGOs are collaborating with disaster‑management teams to map out the most severely affected villages and identify communities that may require additional support—particularly those who lost livelihoods through damaged fishing boats and destroyed crops.
The cyclone’s impact highlighted the vulnerability of coastal communities to shifting weather patterns, stressing the importance of investing in climate‑resilient infrastructure. The repeated damage also affects local economies: the loss of fishing boats and agricultural losses threaten the livelihoods of thousands of families across Prakasam, Bapatla, and neighbouring districts.
As the region enters a phase of recovery, questions about accountability will loom: Parliamentarians and local representatives will likely call for increased funding for coastal defenses, response training, and better early‑warning systems. Civic groups are now advocating for a review of the emergency response protocols that were in place during Cyclone Arnab, pushing for stronger measures to prevent a repeat of the same exposure.
In summary, Cyclone Murasu has left a trail of devastation across Andhra Pradesh’s eastern coast—toppling trees, downing power poles, flooding villages, and forcing the evacuation of tens of thousands. The swift, coordinated response from state and central authorities shows an attempt to uphold public accountability and protect vulnerable populations, though the overall impact on infrastructure, livelihoods, and civic resilience remains profound.
