India
Arnab’s landfall leaves southern Odisha at risk of extreme rain
Flood response must protect roads, homes and remote hill communities.
Flood response must protect roads, homes and remote hill communities.
hit India’s Andhra coast on October 28 and weakened, but heavy rain still threatened southern Odisha. The warned of more than 20 centimetres of rain, , , strong winds and rough seas. The highest risks were in , Koraput, Nabarangpur, Rayagada, Gajapati and Kalahandi. Flooding could also reach inland hill areas, far from the coast.
Odisha closed schools, stopped fishing and sent emergency, medical and power teams. Officials moved 47,830 people from low-lying and landslide-prone areas in eight districts to hundreds of shelters. Rain damaged homes, crops and roads, while floods and lost communications slowed rescue work. No deaths were reported at first, but officials still had to judge when roads, rivers and shelters were safe for people to return.
IMD forecast heavy to very heavy rain and isolated extremely heavy rain over southern Odisha on October 28, with moderate in some and neighbourhoods. The bulletin also forecast heavy rain in parts of northern and interior Odisha as Arnab weakened.
Arnab made during the early hours along the before weakening. IMD still forecast heavy to very heavy rain and isolated extremely heavy rain over southern Odisha, with sea swells of three to six metres along the South Odisha coast and strong winds affecting the region. The outside Odisha did not remove the inland flood threat because the storm’s continued over southern districts.
The government relocated residents from low-lying, exposed and landslide-prone communities in , Gajapati, Malkangiri, Ganjam, Koraput, Kalahandi, Nuapada and Rayagada. The largest movements came from , Gajapati and Malkangiri, reflecting the shift from a coastal cyclone response to a southern Odisha rainfall and flooding operation. Authorities identified for the evacuation.
The state placed southern districts on high alert, restricted fishing and prepared district administrations for flooding, landslides and transport disruption. Authorities readied 135 and 1,600 temporary shelters, while health teams, power backups and emergency delivery services were arranged for vulnerable residents. Officials also released for preparedness and relief operations in the eight districts under special watch.
forecast heavy to very heavy rain and in southern Odisha on October 27 and 28, with hazardous weather associated with . The available bulletin supports the rainfall warning but does not clearly establish every listed district, the claimed landfall timing, or all specific hazards.