Cyclone Murasu set to hit Andhra coast early Tuesday

Cyclone Murasu intensified into a cyclonic storm on Sunday and is set to cross the south Andhra Pradesh coast between Nellore and Narsapur in the early hours of Tuesday, the India Meteorological Department said.

Cyclone Murasu, the second storm to form in the Bay of Bengal in under a week, is likely to become a severe cyclonic storm on Monday before making landfall, the IMD told CNBCTV18. Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has cancelled a planned visit to Delhi to oversee preparations, the Times of India reported.

Landfall due early Tuesday near Nellore

The system took shape as a deep depression over the southwest and adjoining west-central Bay of Bengal before being upgraded to a cyclonic storm on Sunday, the IMD said. Its projected track takes it toward the coast between Nellore and Narsapur, with landfall expected in the early hours of Tuesday, November 3, according to the Indian Express. The IMD expects the storm to intensify into a severe cyclonic storm on Monday, the day before it crosses the land.

The storm is likely to move toward the west-central Bay of Bengal and may bring rain to Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and Telangana, Mint reported. Forecasters have warned of heavy rain, strong winds and rough sea conditions along the Andhra coast, and twenty mandals in the region are expected to see extremely heavy rain, the Times of India said.

Tamil Nadu shuts schools in Chennai and Tiruvallur

North Coastal Tamil Nadu is also in the line of fire. The state government has issued heavy rainfall warnings for seven districts, with Tiruvallur facing very heavy rain on November 1 followed by Chennai and Tiruvallur, according to alerts shared by the state administration. Schools in Chennai and Tiruvallur will remain closed on Monday, the Hindustan Times reported.

For a city built on a shoreline that floods easily, the closures are prudent. The rain has already started in parts of the region, and wet streets with waterlogged underpasses are likely as the system edges closer. On Sunday, Tiruvallur bore the first brunt, with very heavy rain recorded as the cyclone closed in, and similar spells are forecast for Chennai and the district in the days ahead.

Telangana, Odisha and Kolkata on alert

The storm’s influence reaches well beyond Andhra. Telangana has sounded an orange alert for six districts for heavy rainfall on November 2, Mint reported. The IMD has separately posted a heavy rain alert covering both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana as the system approaches, CNBCTV18 said.

Southern Odisha is expected to receive heavy to very heavy rainfall on November 3 and 4 as the system crosses the Andhra coast, the Deccan Chronicle said. Even Kolkata is in for a shower or two. The Telegraph reported that rain is on the cards for the city as Cyclone Murasu intensifies over the Bay of Bengal, and the IMD’s outlook also flags showers for Maharashtra, with some districts likely to see rain as the system’s outer bands drift west, The Week reported.

Two storms in a week test the coast

What stands out is not just the storm itself but the timing. A coastline that faced Cyclone Arnab days ago is having to mobilise its entire machinery again: evacuations, school closures and cancelled official travel. Each costs money and patience, and they land on district administrations that are already stretched thin.

There is also a wider point for ordinary Indians. A single Bay of Bengal system can send rain hundreds of kilometres from its landfall zone, as Maharashtra and West Bengal show. Consecutive storms also leave the ground saturated, so flooding can arrive even when rainfall stays below forecast peaks. The alerts run from Telangana to Odisha, a reminder of how wide a cyclone’s rain shadow can be. For residents in Chennai and Nellore the practical lesson is to take the local warnings seriously, because the storm will not wait for anyone to catch up. With landfall due in the early hours of Tuesday, the next 48 hours will decide how much of the warning turns into water on the ground.