HYDERABAD, Oct. 27 -- Very severe cyclonic storm 'Arnab' began impacting coastal Andhra Pradesh early Tuesday, bringing gusty winds and heavy rainfall that are expected to intensify across the state's northern coast over the next few hours, State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) managing director Prakhar Jain said.

According to the India Meteorological Department, the cyclone, which had moved with a speed of 22kmph during the previous 6 hours, was at 5:30am centered roughly 260 km from Visakhapatnam, 300 km from Kakinada, 390km from Machilipatnam, and 380 km from Gopalpur in Odisha.

It is projected to turn northwestward by Tuesday evening and make landfall between Bapatla and Visakhapatnam, near Yanam, by Wednesday morning. Wind spe...