Cyclone Titli which caused tension among the Andhra Pradesh administration and people of North Andhra region had caused a little damage in Srikakulam district although IMD and officials anticipated devastation.
The cyclone which hovered between Gopalpur of Odisha and Kalingapatnam of Andhra Pradesh for the last two days hit the coast near Gollapadu-Pallesarathi villages of Santabommali mandal, 60 km away from district headquarters at around 3.35 am on Thursday. During the landfall, the gales which moved with a speed of 120 km caused losses to the coconut, paddy and other crops.
Moderate rain was recorded in places like Santabommali, Kotabommali, Tekkali, Vajrapukotturu, Palasa, Mandasa and Itchapuram. With the impact of rains and gales, the damage has been done to the coconut crop which was grown in 7 mandals including Vajrapukotturu, Mandasa, Palasa and others in Uddanam region. Trees have been fallen in Tekkali division. Roads and Buildings department swung into action clear the roads.
Srikakulam Collector K. Dhananjaya Reddy who has been reviewed the weather situation continuously directed the revenue, civil supplies, irrigation and other departments to be alert for the next couple of days till IMD withdraws its warning over cyclone. “We have to be very cautious for the next two days since the district would receive heavy rainfall after cyclone hitting the coast. Special monitoring teams have been sent to Kanchili, Sompeta, Mandasa, Palasa and other places. The impact of the cyclone will be more around 50 km from the landfall area,” said Mr. Reddy.
Fire Safety wing head Ch. Kripavaram said that rescue teams had been kept in Palasa so that they would move easily to the cyclone hit places. According to him, two NDRF teams were also stationed in Palasa and Tekkali for taking up relief measures in affected areas. Srikakulam Joint Collector KVN Chakradhar Babu said that essential goods including food and fuel were stored sufficiently at identified relief camps.
APSRTC has been operating limited services to Visakhpatnam, Palasa, Tekkali and other routes to avoid damage to vehicles and inconvenience to the passengers. With the suggestion from the district administration, a majority of the people remained indoors in the district. Meanwhile, the situation in Vizianagaram was not alarming even after cyclone hitting the coast. Vizianagaram Collector M.Hari Jawaharlal directed the officials to be vigilant till Saturday.
Curfew like situation
Curfew like situation is prevailing in Srikakulam district, particularly in the district headquarters on Thursday morning with people confining themselves to houses with the impact of cyclone Titli which hit the coast near Gollapadu, Pallesaradhi villages of Santabommali mandal of the district at around 3.30 pm. With bitter experiences during Phailin and Hud Hud cyclones, the people feared about natural calamity this time too.
Complete darkness in early hours of Thursday, moderate rain and heavy gales with a speed of 120km per hour caused tension among the people and made them to stay indoors. Minister for Transport K. Atchannaidu and Collector K. Dhananjaya Reddy directed the education department to declare holiday for schools and colleges to prevent untoward incidents. Vehicular movement in all routes is very thin. APSRTC buses are moving with little occupancy rate with passengers postponing their travel plan even in Dasara season.