You don’t have any Active Subscription.

Subscribed with another email? Logout and Login with that one.

Your active subscription(s)

Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription

Products you've access to

Additional Subscription Benefits

Need help with your subscription?

Updated - October 28, 2026 03:53 pm IST - BHUBANESWAR

An excavator clears uprooted trees blocking a road amid rain following strong winds triggered by Cyclone 'Arnab', in Gajapati district, Odisha, on October 28, 2026. | Photo Credit: PTI

Amid heavy rainfall, several districts in southern Odisha on Wednesday (October 28, 2026) are bracing for possible flash floods as cyclone ‘Arnab’ trudged past Andra Pradesh coast

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued flash flood alerts for Koraput, Nabarangpur, Rayagada, Gajapati, Kalahandi, Nuapada, Balangir, Kandhamal and Ganjam districts.

According to the IMD, Mahendragarh in Gajapati district recorded the highest rainfall at 25 cm, followed by Pottangi in Koraput district at 19 cm. Mohana, another location in Gajapati recorded 17 cm, while parts of Ganjam district received 16 cm and Chhatrapur recorded 15 cm.

Uprooting of trees, landslides and inundation of low-lying areas were reported from different districts.

“Rainfall is likely to increase further. We expect heavy rain in Malkangiri, Koraput, Nuapada and Kalahandi districts. Keeping this forecast in mind, we have deployed disaster response teams in accordance with our preparedness plans,” State Special Relief Commissioner Rajesh Pravakar Patil said on Wednesday (October 28, 2026).

“Response teams and fire services personnel are in place, along with Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force and National Disaster Response Force teams. Collectors in all the districts are on alert,” Mr. Patil said.

He said around 28,000 people had been evacuated across eight districts so far, against a planned evacuation target of 48,000. As many as 2,200 pregnant women had been shifted to different health institutions. Around 200 pregnant women had delivered in Ganjam district.

“The situation remains under control, and no untoward incident has been reported so far. Geographically, Gajapati district is close to the area in Andhra Pradesh where the cyclone made landfall. We are also keeping a close watch on the situation, as the district has received heavy rainfall,” the SRC said.

Mr. Patil also cautioned that the cyclone’s movement towards Chhattisgarh could bring heavy rainfall over the next 24 hours. “If it has any impact on the Mahanadi river system, we will need to address the situation accordingly,” he said.

Published - October 28, 2026 03:41 pm IST

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.