Woman dead, crops damaged by hail

A woman died in a hailstorm in Prakasam district on Sunday even as moderate rains accompanied by strong winds and hail drenched parts of coastal Andhra Pradesh.

Winds uprooted some trees and electrical poles, disrupting power supply and traffic at various places in the Agency area of West Godavari district.

Gudivada of Krishna district received about 4.5 cm rainfall. Vijayawada and several towns more than 1 cm.

The rain was attributed to the cyclonic circulation stretching from east Madhya Pradesh to south Tamil Nadu across Telangana and Rayalaseema.

March 19, the state had received about 11.8 mm rainfall against the norm of 7.2 mm.

According to the Cyclone Warning Centre, Visakhapatnam, isolated rain and thundershowers will continue for the next few days in coastal AP.

The untimely rain damaged crops including mango, lemon, watermelon, papaya and paddy. According to preliminary estimates, crops were damaged in about 8,000 hectares in Prakasam, Srikakulam, Visakhapatnam and Krishna districts.

The back-to-back weather systems in March has brought down temperatures a few notches below normal in the last 10 days. Before that, the mercury had risen to 40ºC. On Sunday, the maximum temperature anywhere in the state was limited to 39ºC.