Andhra Pradesh has deployed its State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and Fire Services personnel across 13 cyclone-affected districts after Cyclone Arnab struck the state, with teams clearing more than 10,000 fallen trees, hundreds of uprooted electrical poles and floodwater from low-lying areas.
Relief and rescue operations are continuing in Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam, Alluri Sitarama Raju, Anakapalli, Kakinada, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Konaseema, East Godavari, West Godavari, NTR, Krishna, Guntur and Bapatla districts, according to the report.
The response has focused on restoring access to roads and managing waterlogging in areas where storm damage has disrupted movement and essential services. Four highway mobile patrolling vehicles operating between Vijayawada and the Itchapuram border are clearing fallen trees and electric poles from roadways.
Nearly 281 personnel were involved in cutting and removing trees from roads on Thursday before opening routes to traffic. Four fire-patrolling vehicles have been deployed at the Itchapuram border, while mobile rescue tenders have been positioned in major cities to support emergency operations.
The Fire Services Department has also established 19 boat-rescue teams. Its current equipment deployment includes 23 IRB boats, nine rescue tenders and 21 quick-response vehicles. The scale of the deployment reflects the overlapping demands created by cyclone damage: roads must be cleared for movement, power infrastructure must be secured, and residents in waterlogged or inaccessible areas may require rescue.
The department has received 2,463 emergency calls and 609 calls through the Swarna Grama–Swarna Ward portal related to rescue operations. These requests are being handled alongside field coordination with district administrations, police, revenue officials, the Energy Department and other stakeholder departments.
For residents, the immediate disruption is concentrated around blocked roads, fallen electrical poles and inundated low-lying areas. The clearance of trees and poles is also a prerequisite for restoring safer access for traffic and allowing other response agencies to reach affected communities.
Fire Services director general P. Venkata Ramana and additional director G. Sreenivasulu have acknowledged the efforts of personnel involved in the rescue and relief operations. The department has not provided, in the supplied report, a consolidated timeline for completing clearance work or restoring all affected services. Operations are continuing across the cyclone-affected districts.
