Cyclone Thane hits India’s southeast coast

A severe cyclone in India brought lashing winds and heavy rain to the southeastern coastline on Friday, killing at least 11 people, the Associated Press reported.

Cyclone Thane uprooted trees, ripped off traffic signals from their posts and sent shards of glass and debris flying through the air, CNN reported. The Cyclone hit the states of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Puducherry, flooding many roads and cutting off cell phone service.

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The India Meteorological Department said the cyclone was centered in the Indian Ocean, just 22 miles from Puducherry. Winds reached up to 85 miles per hour in the coastal town of Cuddalore, where 11 people died mostly due to wall collapses and electrocution, the AP reported.

Emergency crews have been working to restore power supplies and clear roads of fallen trees and downed power lines, CNN reported.

Cyclone Thane did manage to leave the southern Andhra Pradesh coast untouched, the Times of India reported. Railroads and airports shut down, either canceling or rescheduling service, and fisherman were advised not to go out to sea.

When Cyclone Laila hit last year, at least 23 people were killed on the southern coast, the BBC reported. It was the worst storm to hit Andhra Pradesh in 14 years and led to more than 50,000 people being evacuated. Andhra Pradesh was hit by its worst cyclone in 1977, when more than 10,000 people were killed, the BBC reported.

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