Vijayawada: The district administration is literally racing against time, trying to put in place as many safeguards as possible so that the damage which Cyclone Lehar is expected to cause when it hits the coast at Machilipatnam, is minimised.
Earlier, Cyclone Helen had hit the coast near the port city but fortunately, its impact was not as much in Krishna than in neighbouring districts. However, the district administration expects Lehar to be more devastating than Helen.
District collector M. Raghunandan Rao warned officials on Tuesday that the gales might hit the coast with a speed of around 200 kmph. The collector conducted the series of meetings with the officials to draw plans to contain the damage and minimise losses.
“The waves are likely to be as high as three meters. Officials have been told to warn fishermen not to venture into the sea. The impact of the cyclone would be felt in a radius of 30 km in the district,” the collector said.
The administration expect Kruttivenu, Bantumilli, Koduru, Nagyalanka, Avanigadda, Mopidevi and Machilipatnam mandals to bear the brunt of the cyclone’s impact.
Control rooms have been set up in the collectorate and at mandal headquarters in the district. Officials have been told to ensure that people do not panic and start migrating from their villages.
