As per the Meteorological Department, Cyclone Montha, which has originated in the Bay of Bengal, has turned into a severe cyclonic storm. It is now situated in the southwest and southeast parts of the Bay of Bengal and moving in a west-northwest direction at a speed of 16 km per hour.
According to the department, the cyclone will develop into a severe cyclonic storm on Tuesday morning. It is presently 710 km south-southeast of Visakhapatnam, 680 km south-southeast of Kakinada, and 600 km east-southeast of Chennai. Coastal areas will experience wind speeds between 50–70 km/hour. When it moves along the coast from Kakinada to Machilipatnam, it can reach a wind speed of 90–110 km/hour.
The government has gone into preparation mode for the impact of the cyclone. Official holidays have been put on hold, and Rs. 19 crore has been released for relief work. Emergency response teams such as SDRF and APSDMA have been activated, and 16 satellite phones have been deployed for communication.
In 57 mandals along the coast, 219 storm shelters have been proposed. The authorities are pulling 62 mechanized boats onto the shore and tourist activities on beaches have been banned for safety reasons.
As a cyclone warning has been sounded, the educational institutions and all the schools of Anakapalle, Krishna, NTR, and Guntur districts will remain closed until Tuesday. West Godavari, Eluru, Bapatla, and Kadapa district educational institutions will remain closed until tomorrow. Nellore district Collector Himanshu Shukla has declared a holiday for the educational institutions today.
Disaster relief teams have been dispatched to different districts. 9 SDRF and 7 NDRF teams are on call for relief work. TR-27 funds were allotted to districts for taking immediate measures, such as opening relief camps and distributing drinking water and foodstuffs supplies.
In Vizianagaram district, Collector Ramsunder Reddy and SP AR Damodar visited the coastal village of Mukkam. They interacted with the villagers and advised them on safety precautions.
