Cyclone Arnab: 609 Andhra schools turn into shelters

People rest at a shelter set up at a school in Kakinada on Tuesday evening (October 27, 2026), before Cyclone Arnab made landfall. | Photo credit: Mahesh Kumar A.

The Andhra Pradesh School Education Department has intensified its preparedness to deal with Cyclone Arnab. As many as 609 school campuses across the state have been activated as shelters and 150 schools have been identified as being at risk of flooding or inundation. Another 78 school buildings have been flagged for possible structural collapse, according to a ministry preparedness report presented to the Real Time Governance Society (RTGS) at 6am on Wednesday (October 28, 2026).

The department monitors 58,616 schools in 28 districts covering 2,22,904 employees and nearly 69.6 million students. Holidays have been declared in 16 coastal districts as a precautionary measure and instructions have been issued to all District Education Officers (DEOs) and Mandal Education Officers (MEOs) to ensure the safety of students and staff.

Control rooms with designated nodal officers have been set up in each DEO office to coordinate emergency preparedness and response around the clock. School authorities have also been instructed to inform parents of school closures and the availability of shelters.

Residents of Uppalanka village in Karapa mandal of Kakinada district have been shifted to a school being used as a cyclone shelter where a medical camp has been set up to take care of them. | Photo credit: PTI

As part of infrastructure security measures, the ministry targeted 1,604 vulnerable schools and 544 weak structures. Roofs, walls and other structural elements of vulnerable buildings are inspected and dangerous buildings have been barricaded to prevent access. No damage was reported to schools as of 6 a.m

Preparedness measures include the provision of drinking water, food supplies, first aid kits and other essential emergency materials at sheltered schools. Updated lists of students and staff along with their contact information were also maintained to facilitate communication and emergency coordination.

Staff have been ordered to remain available at schools operating as shelters. As many as 17,054 student volunteers belonging to the National Cadet Corps (NCC), National Service Scheme (NSS) and Scouts have been mobilized as part of the preparedness effort.

The department coordinates with the Department of Finance, Police, Health, Fire and Electricity to ensure an effective response to any emergency. Emergency contact numbers 100, 108 and 112 have been posted at schools, and situational reports are regularly submitted to RTGS and the Directorate of School Education. Any incidents must be reported immediately.

The report follows the strengthening of a low pressure system over the Bay of Bengal into a depression on 24 October, a depression on 25 October and a cyclonic storm on 26 October. The cyclone crossed the coast near Narsapur early on Wednesday and has since weakened into a severe cyclonic storm.

School education department officials said the ministry’s preparedness measures were based on 15-point guidelines issued to district-level BC Education Welfare officials on October 27, along with weather forecasts from the India Meteorological Department and Andhra Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority.

Published – 28 Oct 2026 11:14 IST