At least 31 people were killed in Andhra Pradesh as a severe cyclonic storm lashed the state’s coastal belt, leaving behind a trail of death and destruction in Krishna, West Godavari and Guntur districts.Krishna district was the worst affected accounting for 24 deaths in house collapses and heavy rains, followed by West Godavari four and Guntur three, official sources said here this evening.Torrential rains, accompanied by gales, caused heavy damage to crops and roads and uprooted trees and power lines, leading to power disruption in over 900 villages in the three districts where over 500 cattleheads perished. A vast stretch of paddy and other crops were damaged in the coastal belt. As many as 413 special teams have been deployed in the affected areas for restoring power on war footing, state Energy Minister K. Subbarayudu said. So far, power supply has been restored in 50 per cent of the affected areas and efforts were on to restore in other affected areas as quickly as possible, he said.A report quoting Krishna district collectorate at Machilipatnam said 24 people died in house collapses and heavy rains in Krishna district where about 3,000 people were evacuated from low-lying areas as heavy rains led to severe damage to crops and roads. A majority of the victims were elderly people who died due to cold wave.Machilipatnam division reported ten deaths while Gudivada division eight, Vijayawada two and Nuzividu division reported four deaths, the report said.Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, who reviewed the situation soon after his return here from Delhi, will visit the affected areas in Guntur and Krishna districts tomorrow.
