Cyclone Arnab disrupts cargo handling at Indian ports

Cyclone Arnab disrupted vessel movements and cargo handling at ports along India’s Andhra Pradesh coast, with Visakhapatnam suspending inward ship traffic and cargo operations as severe conditions reached the Bay of Bengal. The storm crossed the Andhra Pradesh and Yanam coastline early on 28 October with sustained winds of 125–135km/h and gusts up to 150km/h, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). Port authorities and terminal operators have applied local restrictions, while some recovery activity has begun without a confirmed return to full service.

The IMD’s coastal bulletin placed Great Danger Signal No X at Kakinada and Signal No IX at Visakhapatnam, Gangavaram and Bheemunipatnam. Conditions included high to very high seas, gale-force winds and poor visibility during heavy rain. Authorities also warned of storm surge affecting low-lying coastal areas. These are operational warnings rather than a declaration that every port has suffered physical damage; harbour access restrictions can be imposed before damage occurs when pilotage, mooring and cargo handling become unsafe.

Visakhapatnam suspended inward vessel movements and cargo operations, with ships in its outer harbour moved to anchorage, according to operational reporting from the port area. Trade contacts later described some terminal activity restarting under government guidance, but that does not confirm the reopening of every berth or the clearance of vessels waiting offshore. Kakinada, Gangavaram and other Andhra Pradesh gateways were also subject to weather warnings and restrictions. The status of individual terminals can diverge as pilots, port control teams and operators assess the conditions at their own facilities.

Reopening involves distinct navigational and terminal safety decisions. Pilots need sufficient visibility, sea conditions and tug availability before ships can enter or leave safely. Terminal managers must separately check ship-to-shore lifting equipment, container stacks, yard routes, electricity supply and the ability to secure labour for cargo work. An outward vessel movement might be authorised while some loading operations are still stopped. Likewise, a berth may become accessible before road approaches or inland depots are ready to accept the freight accumulated during the closure.

Visakhapatnam is a feeder gateway within India’s east-coast container network and handles cargo connecting with services serving Kolkata and other ports. A delay to the feeder vessel may prevent a container from reaching its booked connection with an ocean-going service, especially where the receiving ship sails before the feeder resumes. The exposure is wider than ships physically alongside when the storm arrived: boxes waiting in the yard, inland deliveries approaching the port and import cargo booked for collection can all move out of sequence. No reliable aggregate count of containers delayed by Arnab has been established.

When inward ship movements are halted, vessels may wait offshore, omit the port or rearrange their rotation. Restoring berth access then creates competing demands from the queue and ships approaching according to their original schedules. Crane availability and yard capacity determine how many calls can be processed, while missed loading windows can cause carriers to change subsequent connections. The resulting congestion could continue after sea conditions improve, but neither a consolidated waiting-time figure nor a port-wide clearance timetable has been verified for the affected terminals.

Container cargo often has a second timetable after the port call. A local feeder service may be scheduled to transfer goods to a mainline ship at another gateway; missing that departure can extend the disruption beyond the duration of the storm. Operators must rebook affected containers, update documentation if voyages change and plan available truck or rail collections around revised terminal appointments. There is no confirmed count of missed feeder connections or service omissions attributable to Arnab, so the scale of the onward effect remains uncertain.

Storm-related disruption is not confined to ships. Heavy rain, floodwater and damaged power or communications infrastructure can affect road access and the handling of goods at depots. Air services in Andhra Pradesh have also experienced disruption, but passenger flight cancellations alone cannot be used to infer the volume of air freight delayed. An individual warehouse’s ability to work may depend on its drainage, power backup and whether staff and vehicles can reach the site. Restarting cargo movements therefore requires both marine clearance and usable landside connections.

The IMD continued to display Great Danger signals for several Andhra Pradesh ports in its 28 October coastal bulletin, despite the storm weakening after landfall. Local maritime conditions may improve at different rates from the cyclone’s overall intensity. Confirmed changes to berth restrictions, vessel waiting times, rail and road access, and carrier sailing schedules will give the first reliable indication of the backlog. Until those are available, reports of partial recovery should not be treated as evidence that freight flows have returned to normal.