Cyclone Arnab kills at least 3 in India's Andhra Pradesh as nearly 100,000 are told to move to safety

At least three people were killed after Cyclone Arnab battered India's southeastern coast in Andhra Pradesh, officials said. The storm damaged homes and farmland.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said Arnab made landfall in southeastern Andhra Pradesh early on Wednesday as a 'very severe cyclonic storm', with winds of 125-135km/h (77-84mph) and gusts reaching 150km/h.

Torrential rain of as much as 30 centimetres (nearly 12 inches) was recorded in parts of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, the IMD said, as ferocious winds and heavy rain lashed the coast.

The storm weakened into a 'deep depression' throughout Wednesday afternoon, the IMD said, after making landfall earlier that day.

About 50,000 people were told to move to safer areas in Andhra Pradesh, and another 48,000 people were told to move in neighbouring Odisha.