Cyclone Hudhud was virtually a ‘nightmarish’ experience for people of the district as hundreds of villages reeled under darkness for close to two days as the power supply network suffered maximum damage. It was difficult distinguishing between the dawn and dusk as the sky was heavily overcast throughout the day and what compounded their woes were gales which ripped through habitations and uprooted a large number of trees. Telephone communication went haywire from about 11 a.m. till 6 p.m. and the district officials found it hard to contact their higher officials in Hyderabad and their counterparts in Visakhapatnam and Vizianagaram.
The situation was grim at Kalingapatnam, Bandaruvanipeta, Mogadalapadu and other areas which are close to the sea coast. The sea water moved 40 feet towards coast, causing tension among the people. Over 40 thatched houses were damaged in Mogadalapadu area.
The government shifted nearly 1.25 lakh people to 150 relief shelters.
