Hudhud pummels North Coastal Andhra, 6 dead, 4 lakh affected

* Power supply disrupted, phones go dead

* Transport badly hit, trains cancelled.

* Huge losses in North Coastal Andhra

Eight people has reportedly died in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha by Cyclone Hudhud which pounded Visakhapatnam with relentless force on Sunday.Heavy rain and fales at almost 200 kmph speed have wrought a trail of devastation in Vizag district, including the  "City of Destiny".

As many as four lakh people in four districts of AP and 156,000 in nine districts of Odisha were evacuated to relief camps and more will be shifted to safer places depending  the situation, officials said.

The high velocity gales battered Visakhapatnam, which is home to a Naval base, Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and parts of East Godavari districts throwing normal life out of gear after the cyclone made landfall near Vizag shortly before Sunday noon downing power and communication lines and closing roads and railways.

Trees were uprooted and roofs of thatched huts and sheds and hoardings blown away and streets largely wore a deserted look as panic-stricken residents remained indoors.

The port city of Vishakapatnam is without power supply since Sunday night and communication systems have collapsed at many places.Transport services came to to a halt in the region. Flights were also disrupted.According to AP's Revenue (Disaster Management) Department, the cyclone left railway lines in Visakhapatnam badly damaged, besides causing damage to the airport there.

The Railways cancelled 58 trains and diverted 50 trains on the Vizag route in view of the situation, officials said.

The death toll was placed at eight -- five in AP (three in Visakhapatnam and one each in Srikakulam and Vizianagaram districts) and three in Odisha, an official statement said.

Three deaths have been reported due to impact of Hudhud. Two died after trees fell on them and one in collapse of compound-wall in Visakhapatnam and Srikakulam districts, respectively, AP Chief Secretary I V R Krishna Rao said.

According to Odisha Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) P K Mohapatra, three persons including a minor girl died due to cyclone. Gajapati district is the worst affected, he added.
 There is no report of damage to any major installations, Mahapatra said.

The impact is tremendous, Union Minister Ashok Gajapati Raju, who is an MP from Vizianagaram, said.

In Delhi, IMD Director Laxman Singh Rathore said that as the cyclone was crossing AP coastline the wind speed was 170-180 kmph and gusting up to 195 kmph.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to AP Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu and discussed relief and rescue measures . He promised all possible assistance.

The situation is serious, Naidu said, as he requested the Centre to declare the cyclone a 'national calamity'.

An official statement said 24 teams of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel and six helicopters have been deployed for the rescue and relief operations, besides four Army columns.