Cyclone 'Phethai' makes landfall, normal life hit in coastal Andhra Pradesh

Amaravati: Cyclone 'Phethai' made landfall in East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh on Monday afternoon bringing moderate to heavy rains even as normal life remained hit in the coastal districts of the state.

The Real-Time Governance Centre at the state Secretariat in Amaravati announced that 'Phethai' weakened into a cyclone as it made landfall near Katrenikona around 12.25 pm with a wind speed of 80 kmph.

One person was killed in a landslide caused by heavy rains in Vijayawada city but no other casualties have been reported from elsewhere so far, according to sources in the State Disaster Management Authority.

The South Central Railway has cancelled several trains and rescheduled some others because of the cyclone.

Air traffic to the port city of Visakhapatnam has been hampered due to turbulent weather conditions, following which some flights were diverted to Hyderabad.

Holiday has been declared for educational institutions in the coastal districts of the state as a precautionary measure.