Incessant rain and flood claimed lives of at least 28 people in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha provinces of India. About 67,000 were said to have been evacuated with hundreds of thousands more remaining stranded.
The rain has been caused by a cyclonic storm that turned into a deep convection over the Bay of Bengal, NDTV reported. Forecasts were on for heavy to very heavy rainfall in the next two days.
At least 18 were dead in Andhra Pradesh. Over 67,000 were evacuated to some 135 relief camps mainly from Srikakulam and Guntur districts.
More than 4,700 houses, 434 thousand hectares of crop and 800 kms of road in the area had already perished.
Helicopters began rescue works in Odisha, where at least 10 people were dead, five were missing, and hundreds of thousands were stranded in the flood, on Friday.
Local special relief commissioner PK Mohapatra endorsed the information. "All rivers in Ganjam, Gajapati, Rayagada and Nayagarh are overflowing."
Authorities were engaged with evacuation in the affected areas. In many places, relief teams could reach only after water receded.
