Cyclone Arnab: 10,000 in relief camps in flood-hit Ichchapuram in Andhra; NH-16 still under water

Floodwater from the Bahuda river covers National Highway 16 near Ichchapuram in Srikakulam district on Thursday. Vehicles are yet to be allowed on the stretch.

It is a nightmare for thousands of people in Ichchapuram and nearby villages in Andhra Pradesh’s Srikakulam district, such as Loddaputti, Korigam and Rattakanna, which were hit by flash floods in the Bahuda river after Cyclone Arnab.

Although the government had sent around 10,000 people to relief camps set up at several schools in Ichchapuram, many people remained in their flooded homes. Moving them out became a major challenge because of the strong flow of water in the villages. Restoring power supply is another challenge, since APEPDCL could not take up repairs because of waterlogging in several places.

Srikakulam Collector Swapnil Dinakar Pundkar and other officials monitored the relief operations on Thursday (October 29, 2026) night and in the early hours of Friday. Food packets were given to those in relief camps and taken to villagers in boats brought by NDRF teams, they said.

“We have taken special care for elderly people, pregnant women at the special camps. The medical and health department ensured deliveries to many women in different places in spite of inclement weather and floods to Bahuda and other rivers,” Mr. Pundkar told The Hindu.

“The district administration is capable of handling one lakh cusecs of water. Around 89,000 cusecs of water was discharged. We are hopeful that normalcy would be restored in a day as flood water is receding fast,” he added.

Vehicles are yet to be allowed on National Highway 16 (Kolkata-Chennai) because the six-lane road is under floodwater.

People living in low-lying areas along the Nagavali and Vamsadhara rivers are also suffering. As many as 113 villages have been affected by floods in the Vamsadhara. About 79,820 cusecs of water was released from the Gotta barrage on the Vamsadhara.

According to initial estimates, crops on 21,519 hectares were damaged in the district, along with horticulture crops on 383 hectares. Eleven houses collapsed and 121 were partly damaged in the rain and floods. Of the 36 routes where road traffic was disrupted, 14 have been reopened.

Gales brought down 528 electric poles. Power supply has been restored in several places, except in the Ichchapuram constituency. The Chief Minister’s Office enquired about the situation and directed the district administration to speed up relief work and restore normalcy.