G.V.R. Subba Rao MACHILIPATNAM: Heavy downpour accompanied by strong winds and gales hit the district headquarters following concentration of cyclone in the Bay of Bengal on Saturday. An alert was sounded in coastal Andhra as cyclone over the Bay of Bengal threatened to hit the coast by night. The cyclone lay centred about 200 km from Nellore, and it was likely to cross the coast between Bapatla and Nellore, says, Krishna District Collector N. Sridhar. He said that nearly 5,000 people living in low-lying areas in seven mandals had been shifted to safer places. The teams of were formed in 7 mandals under the supervision of Sub-Collector, Zilla Parishad CEO and RDOs.