Cyclone Ditwah: Not much rain in AP until Saturday afternoon

While the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange alert for the three districts of Tirupati, Chittoor and SPSR Nellore, no significant rainfall has been recorded in the three districts as of Saturday, November 29, at 2 pm.

According to the real-time rainfall information from the AP State Development Planning Society, many places in Tirupati district recorded very light to light showers, not exceeding 12 mm, between 8.30 am and 2 pm on Saturday. However, skies remained cloudy as maximum temperatures in Rayalaseema and south coastal Andhra Pradesh remained below 30 degrees Celsius.

The IMD had forecast heavy rainfall in Prakasam, YSR and Annamayya districts, while isolated very heavy rainfall could be expected in SPSR Nellore, Tirupati and Chittoor districts on Saturday.

In a press bulletin, IMD, Amaravati, Director S. Stella said the entire state may receive light to moderate rainfall on Sunday (November 30). A heavy to very heavy rainfall alert has been issued for the same six districts, with isolated extremely heavy rainfall likely in SPSR Nellore, Chittoor and Tirupati districts. A red alert has been issued for the last three.

Thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds of 60-70 kmph, with gusts up to 80 kmph, likely at isolated places over South Coastal AP and Rayalaseema. On November 29, 30 and December 1, showers with wind speeds of 40-50 km/h and gusts of up to 60 km/h are likely at isolated places over the north coast of AP and Yanam.

Meanwhile, Cyclonic Storm Ditwah was moving north-northwestwards at a speed of 8 km per hour and was centered at around 8.30 am, almost 80 km east of Jaffna in Sri Lanka, 280 km south-east of Pondicherry and 380 km south of Chennai. It is very likely to continue moving north-northwestward and reach the southwestern Bay of Bengal near the coast of northern Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and southern Andhra Pradesh by early morning of November 30.

Meanwhile, Home Minister Vangalapudi Anitha on Saturday at the AP State Disaster Management Authority office reviewed cyclone preparedness in the likely affected districts. She also interacted with the district collectors and directed the officials to ensure that the National Disaster Response Force and State Disaster Response Force teams remained ready.

All control rooms should be available to people 24/7 and weather warnings should be clearly communicated to officials on the ground, she said, adding that precautions should be taken to prevent loss of life and minimize property damage.

People can call toll-free numbers 112, 1070, 18004250101 for help.