Cyclone Arnab makes landfall in Andhra Pradesh after more than 180,000 people evacuate — the death toll is disputed
Very severe cyclonic storm Arnab crossed the Andhra Pradesh–Yanam coast early on Wednesday 28 October 2026, between Bapatla and Visakhapatnam and southwest of Yanam near Narsapur, with sustained winds of 125–135 km/h, gusts to 150 km/h and a storm surge of up to 1.5 metres, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said. More than 180,000 people had been evacuated in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. How many people died is disputed: a National Disaster Response Force official told reporters three people lost their lives, while Andhra Pradesh's toll was revised through the day to five, mostly from electrocution and falling trees and poles. Odisha reported no deaths.
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Key points
- Arnab crossed the Andhra Pradesh–Yanam coast early on 28 October as a very severe cyclonic storm, with winds of 125–135 km/h and gusts to 150 km/h, the IMD said.
- More than 180,000 people were evacuated in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha; Odisha reported no deaths.
- The death toll is disputed: the NDRF reported three deaths, Andhra Pradesh revised its toll to five.
- Andhra Pradesh reports at least 180 houses destroyed and 220 trees down, and has announced compensation for each death.
What happened
Arnab was the first formally named cyclone of the 2026 North Indian Ocean season, forming over the east-central Bay of Bengal on 24 October and intensifying unusually fast over abnormally warm water. India's east coast is among the world's most cyclone-exposed shorelines; the 1999 Odisha super cyclone killed roughly 10,000 people, and the shelter and warning network built since is credited with this storm's low toll in Odisha.
Claim by claim
Why this label: The IMD's landfall account, reported by NewKerala and carried in the same terms by Al Jazeera and Reuters' reporting; meteorologists attribute the rapid intensification to an abnormally warm Bay of Bengal.
On the ladder: a claim earns Verified from primary evidence, or from two independent sources that do not copy each other.
Why this label: The evacuation total is Reuters', reported by Al Jazeera and NBC; the Odisha figures and the train cancellations are the state and rail reports carried by NewKerala and Clarisse's synthesis.
On the ladder: a claim earns Verified from primary evidence, or from two independent sources that do not copy each other.
Why this label: The three is the NDRF official's figure to reporters, carried by Al Jazeera/Reuters; the five is Andhra Pradesh's revised state toll in Clarisse's synthesis of the day's reporting. The two counts were made at different times by different authorities, which is why neither is carried as settled.
On the ladder: credible sources conflict, so we show both workings. One side's own statement is that side's position — never proof.
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Why this label: The chief minister's letter and announcements, reported by Al Jazeera and by The News Mill's report of the relief package.
On the ladder: a claim earns Verified from primary evidence, or from two independent sources that do not copy each other.
What we know / what we don't know yet
What we know
- The landfall, its place and timing, and its strength, on the IMD's own account.
- More than 180,000 people were evacuated, and Odisha reported no deaths.
What we don't know yet
- The settled death toll — the NDRF's three and Andhra Pradesh's revised five do not agree, and no consolidated toll has been published.
- The full damage bill — crop-loss compensation awaits the state's damage report to the central government.
Why it matters
A very severe cyclone crossed a coast where more than 12 million people live in its path, and the confirmed deaths can be counted on one hand against 1999's roughly 10,000 — the difference is the evacuation. The remaining dispute, three deaths or five, is small in number and large in what it says about counting the dead across two states and several agencies.
Background
A super cyclone strikes Odisha, killing roughly 10,000 people; the state builds the shelter and early-warning network it still uses.
Arnab forms over the Bay of Bengal and intensifies rapidly to a very severe cyclonic storm over abnormally warm water.
Arnab completes landfall on the Andhra Pradesh–Yanam coast after more than 180,000 people are evacuated.
Update history
No silent edits. Every change is written here, with its time.
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Published in Checking state — checking continues, and claims are labelled as reporting develops. Basis: the meteorological department's landfall account, with the disaster force's toll and the state's revised toll carried side by side.