Cyclone Murasu damages crops across 15 Andhra districts, affects over 30,000 hectares

• Murasu cyclone damages crops across 15 districts in Andhra Pradesh, affecting more than 30,000 hectares.

• Krishna, Bapatla and Nandyala report the heaviest crop losses.

• Over 10,800 people evacuated as the state deploys disaster response teams and relief camps.

More than 30,000 hectares of standing crops were damaged across 15 districts of Andhra Pradesh after severe cyclonic storm Murasu affected the state, with Krishna, Bapatla and Nandyala reporting the heaviest losses, officials said on Tuesday.

Preliminary estimates put the damaged crop area at 30,661 acres, according to an official press release. Paddy, cotton and maize were among the worst-affected crops.

The cyclone had an abnormal impact across 132 mandals in the 15 districts, prompting the evacuation of 10,805 people to cyclone shelters.

The state government set up 171 relief camps and distributed 14,810 food packets, the release said.

Eleven National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams and 13 State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams were deployed for relief operations. The government also arranged 613 generators, while the Fire Department deployed 185 teams to clear uprooted trees and remove obstructions caused by waterlogging.

As a precautionary measure, 3,066 pregnant women and 1,008 nursing mothers were shifted to hospitals before the cyclone began affecting the state.

A total of 725 medical teams were deployed across 13 districts, while 362 ambulances were kept on standby, the release added.