Cyclone Michaung makes landfall in India’s south; 9 killed earlier in floods, rain

BHUBANESHWAR, India - Cyclone Michaung hit the southern India coast on Dec 5, sending tall waves crashing into coastal towns, submerging roads and killing at least nine people, including a child.

The cyclone made landfall on the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh near the town of Bapatla, barrelling in with winds of up to 110kmh, the weather office said.

“The landfall process is continuing and is expected to complete during the next three hours,” the Indian Meteorological Department said on social media platform X.

Parts of the state are expected to be pelted with more than 200mm of rain, the weather office said, and at least 8,000 people have been evacuated.

A four-year-old boy died in Tirupati district after a wall fell, said Mr C. Nagaraju, executive director of the state’s disaster management authority.

Meanwhile, eight people were killed in neighbouring Tamil Nadu state, officials said.

Almost 7,000 people were evacuated from the state’s coastal districts on Dec 4.

In Tamil Nadu’s capital Chennai, a major electronics and manufacturing hub, residents were seen wading waist-deep through the murky floodwaters, which swept away cars and submerged a runway, triggering the shutdown of one of India’s busiest airports until the morning of Dec 5.

The rain has stopped and water has receded at Chennai airport, and the airfield was operational from 9am local time (11.30am Singapore time), a spokesperson for the federal civil aviation ministry said.

The rain and wind snapped power lines and uprooted trees, officials said, and more than 140 train journeys and 40 flights were cancelled in Andhra Pradesh.

Taiwan’s Foxconn and Pegatron halted Apple iPhone production at their facilities near Chennai due to heavy rain, sources said on Dec 4.

In December 2015, floods in Tamil Nadu killed at least 290 people and caused widespread damage. REUTERS