The Andhra Pradesh Weather Forecasting and Early Warning Research Centre (AWARE), a division of the RTGS, on Sunday said cyclone Phethai might make landfall by the evening of Monday between Kakinada and Tuni. It would be accompanied by winds blowing at 80-100 kmph. The RTGS sounded high alert in East Godavari, Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram and Srikakulam districts which might receive heavy to very heavy rainfall.
D. Varaprasad, Secretary, Revenue (Disaster Management) Department, requested the commandant of the NDRF 10th battalion at Mangalagiri, the Inspector General of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and the Director General of the A.P. Fire Services to deploy teams in vulnerable areas.
The RTG said people could dial Parishkara Vedhika 1100 call centre and seek help. Special staff had been deployed there.
The East Godavari district administration has geared up to undertake relief and rehabilitation activities in 298 villages in 17 mandals which could be hit. Finance Minister Yanamala Ramakrishnudu and Home Minister N. Chinarajappa reviewed the situation on Sunday and said the Chief Minister was monitoring the situation from the Secretariat. Collector Kartikeya Misra declared holidays for the educational institutions in the 17 mandals on Monday and Tuesday and asked the all the Tehsildars and other employees to be on duty. Help centres were established in the Collectorate and at the RDO office at Amalapuram.
Special teams from the NDRF and the SDRF were deployed at Yanam, where a command control centre was established. The atmosphere was normal till Sunday evening but many parts of the district had witnessed downpour since the evening. Precautionary steps were taken to provide power supply to the mobile phone towers and restore the road network in vulnerable areas.
In Machilipatnam, 64 rehabilitation centres had been set up where people from vulnerable habitations were given shelter. Collector B. Lakshmikantam told newsmen that many families had been shifted to the centres in the Nagayalanka and the Koduru mandals.
