Vizianagaram, East Godavari, West Godavari and Krishna districts of coastal Andhra and some parts of Telangana experienced rains, inundating low-lying areas, officials said.
Wind with a speed of 45 to 50km per hour (kmph) was blowing along the coast.
All nine coastal districts of the state went on high alert with the cyclonic storm nearing the coast. Heavy to very heavy rains are likely at some places in the coastal Andhra.
According to India Meteorological Department (IMD) bulletin on Thursday evening, the cyclonic storm lay centred at about 800km southeast of Paradip, 850km east-southeast of Kalingapatnam, and 870km east-southeast of Visakhapatnam.
"It would continue to move northwestwards and cross north Andhra Pradesh and Odisha coast between Kalingapatnam and Paradip, close to Gopalpur (Odisha) by evening of October 12, 2013 as a very severe cyclonic storm with a maximum sustained wind speed of 175-185kmph," it said.
Chief secretary PK Mohanty held a video conference with collectors of the coastal districts and directed them to evacuate people from low-lying areas near the coast and provide them shelter in relief camps. The officials were also asked to store essential commodities.
A section of government employees in coastal Andhra who were on strike for nearly two months to oppose the central government's decision to divide the state, returned to work Thursday to participate in relief and rehabilitation work.
Revenue, relief and rehabilitation minister N Raghuveera Reddy said the district officials were directed to seek help from the army, navy and air force for taking up rescue work wherever required.
Visakhapatnam Cyclone Warning Centre has warned fishermen against venturing into sea. Second warning signal was hoisted at Visakhapatnam, Gangavaram, Kakinada, Machilipatnam, Krishnapatnam and other ports along nearly 1,000km long coast.
Odisha seeks Army's help
Odisha on Thursday urged the central government to issue standing instructions to the defence forces to extend help as cyclone "Phailin" may hit the state on Saturday.
In a latest bulletin, the weather office here said the storm over east central Bay of Bengal moved northwestwards, intensifying into a very severe cyclonic storm and lay centred at about 800km off Paradip.
It would continue to move northwestwards and cross north Andhra Pradesh and Odisha coast between Kalingapatnam in Andhra Pradesh and Paradip by Oct 12 evening with a maximum sustained wind speed of 175-185km per hour, the weather office said.
The distant storm warning signal number has been raised to two from the earlier one at Paradip and Gopalpur ports.
The storm system will bring lashing rain and strong winds to the state's coastal belt, a senior official at the Bhubaneswar Meteorological Centre here said.
"Our past experience indicates that despite preparedness by the state government, a severe cyclonic storm requires support of the defence forces to mitigate the effect of extreme weather," chief minister Naveen Patnaik wrote in a letter to defence minister AK Antony.
"The defence units located in Odisha and nearby locations may please be directed to provide all possible support to the civil authorities as and when requested by the state administration," Patnaik said in his letter.
The state government has made preparations to meet any eventuality, and directed collectors of 14 cyclone-prone districts to deploy relief and rescue officials at vulnerable points.
People will also be evacuated from low-lying areas to safer places if this is required.
"We have asked all the officials concerned to stay prepared and conduct mock drills of relief and rescue forces. We have asked them to keep adequate food items, boats and tree-cutting equipment ready," special relief commissioner Pradeep Kumar Mohapatra told IANS.
He said the state has about 50 satellite phones and officials were ensuring they work properly in case there is disruption in telephone services.
Round-the-clock control rooms have been activated in the district headquarter towns, including the highly cyclone-prone Jagatsinghpur, Bhadrak, Balasore, Ganjam, Puri and Kendrapada.
A state-level control room set up in the state capital Bhubaneswar was coordinating with control rooms in the districts, officials said.
Patnaik held a meeting of top officials Thursday to review the preparedness for dealing with the cyclone. Such meetings are expected on a day-to-day basis.
"We are fully prepared, and we have adequate boats and food items ready. Disaster forces have been kept on standby," Satya Kumar Mullick, collector of Jagatsinghpur district, told IANS.
A super cyclone struck 14 coastal districts of the state Oct 29-31, 1999, killing around 10,000 people, as high velocity winds blowing at nearly 300km per hour destroyed homes and other properties.
This year, hundreds of families living in villages close to the sea have started moving to safer places as they fear for their lives.
People are stocking up on essential food items and candles in the coastal regions, as the 1999 cyclone left them without electricity, water, sanitation, healthcare, communication and transport for over a week.
Food prices are skyrocketing in many places, including state capital Bhubaneswar, as some unscrupulous traders are allegedly hoarding goods to earn more in case situation worsens.
"We bought five kg potatoes at Rs 15 a kg, three rupees higher than the normal price," said Soumendra Mohanty, a resident of the state capital.
