Low Pressure System Brings Heavy Rains To AP Coast, Yellow Alert Issued

Visakhapatnam: A well-marked low-pressure area over the northwest Bay of Bengal caused rainfall across Andhra Pradesh's coastal districts on Wednesday. The authorities issued yellow alerts and flood warnings as the weather system moved inland.

The state disaster management authority said the low-pressure system, positioned off the north Odisha coast, was expected to move west-north-westwards across north Odisha and adjoining Jharkhand and north Chhattisgarh states over the next 24 hours.

Yellow alerts have been issued for Srikakulam, Manyam and Alluri Sitarama Raju districts along the north coast, where heavy rains were likely soon.

Meanwhile, moderate rainfall was forecast for the south coast, accompanied by winds gusting at 35 to 45 km per hour. Light to moderate rains were anticipated at isolated locations in Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Parvathipuram and Alluri Sitarama Raju districts for Thursday.

By Wednesday evening, Nakkapalli in Anakapalli district received the highest precipitation at 5.4 cm, followed by Gajuwaka in Visakhapatnam district (5.3 cm), Vempadu (Anakapalli) (4.5 cm), Nathaiyyapalem (Visakhapatnam) (4.4 cm), Merakamudidam (Vizianagaram) (3.6 cm), Kakinada (0.8 cm) and Amaravati (0.2 cm).

Heavy rains have severely impacted Visakhapatnam, with roads across the city experiencing flooding. The situation near the bus stop in Gajuwaka has been particularly challenging, with floodwaters reaching dangerous levels and causing severe difficulties for students, pedestrians and two-wheeler riders.

The weather system is expected to impact major rivers in the region. Officials said the Godavari river's flood flow was likely to increase slightly. Wednesday evening, water levels at Bhadrachalam measured 40.7ft, while the flow at Cotton Barrage in Dhavaleswaram reached 8,67,660 cusecs, while the Krishna river flood levels have begun to recede, with the flow at Prakasam Barrage measured at 76,216 cusecs.