Cold wave, fog grip AP districts; G Madugula records 1.9°C, lowest in 3 years

Visakhapatnam: The Agency areas in Visakhapatnam are recording single-digit temperatures, attracting many tourists to the area. On 9 January, G Madugula recorded 1.9°Celsius, the lowest temperature in the last three years, followed by Chintapalle in the ASR district with 2.8 °Celsius, and Araku Valley with 3.2°Celsius. On Monday, many hill stations recorded temperatures between 1.9–4°Celsius.

On 8 January, Chintapalle recorded the lowest temperature of 1.5°Celsius, perhaps the lowest of the decade. As per the Regional Agriculture Research Station (RARS) at Chintapalle in ASR district, the primary weather station in ASR district, in 1992, Chintapalli recorded 0°Celsius, the lowest for the past 30 years.

Many agency areas, including Araku, Lambasingi, and Chintapalli, saw frost and thin ice sheets formed in open places. This was surprising for many people, especially tourists who had never seen such a cold wave in the agency in the last few winters.

Cold wave to bring cold nights

The Vizag Weatherman said that due to the cold winds, many districts will see cold nights in the next few days, He tweeted, "Even in cities, the temperature dropped to 11 to 15°Celsius. Mini weather stations such as Araku recorded less than 5°Celsius. Due to cold winds from North India, the cold wave impact during the nights will be high in North Andhra districts, Godavari, Krishna, and Rayalaseema, for the next 3-4 days."

With a cold wave hitting Andhra Pradesh, the minimum temperatures are dropping to single digits. The intensity of the cold winds has also increased. Many areas in ASR, Parvathipuram, Vizianagaram, and Srikakulam districts recorded temperatures below 10°Celsius. In Rayalaseema, minimum temperatures were between 10–15°Celsius.

NTR, Palnadu, Bapatla, Eluru, Kurnool, Guntur, and Nandyal are recording temperatures between 10–13°Celsius. Cold winds blow from 8 p.m, and a fog is seen till 10 a.m. According to the locals in Chintapalli, they are used to such cold conditions and they prefer to stay indoors during the cold winds. Weathermen say it is rare to see Rayalaseema stations recording temperatures close to Araku Valley levels and some parts of Nandyal districts have touched 5°Celsius.

Lowest temp in past 30 years (Chintapalli)

January 6, 1992: 0°C

December 30, 1998: 1°C

January 5, 1999: 1°C

January 17, 2003: 1°C

January 15, 2012: 1°C

December 31, 2018: 1.5°C

January 8, 2023: 1.5°C

Tourists throng hill stations

Winters have also been the best time for tourists to visit the Vizag agency to experience the cold winter, but this winter, the experience is even more exciting. With videos and photos of frost and ice sheets going viral on social media, the flow of tourists to the agency has increased. Vanjangi hills saw around 3,000 tourists in the last two days who came to view the beautiful sunrise and the foggy winters.

Many are planning trips to Chintapalli, Lammasingi, Tajangi, Vanjangi, Dallapalle, Araku, Deomali, and Dudduma Falls to experience the chilly weather. People, especially the youth, prefer riding their bikes to the hill stations to make their journey more adventurous. Many stay overnight in tents to experience the morning frost and watch the clouds on top of the hills.

IMD issues yellow alert in TS

The early morning temperatures also remained low in many parts of Telangana like the RGIA in Shamshabad which recorded 6.5°Celsius while Botanical Garden in Kondapur recorded 5.4°Celsius. A massive surge of dry northerly winds was the reason for the cold wave conditions in Telangana. The cold weather is likely to continue till 11 January.

According to the Telangana State Development Planning Society (TSDPS), Kohir in Sangareddy recorded the state's lowest minimum temperature of 4.6°Celsius in the last 24 hours. Besides Sangareddy, Rangareddy, Vikarabad, Adilabad, and Komaram Bheem Asifabad districts recorded minimum temperatures below 10°Celsius. West Marredpally in Hyderabad recorded the city's lowest minimum temperature of 8.9°Celsius.

Meanwhile, IMD Hyderabad has issued a yellow alert for seven districts on 9 January. It has predicted cold wave conditions in Adilabad, Komaram Bheem Asifabad, Mancherial, Medak, Sangareddy, Kamareddy, and Nirmal.