LIVE | Cyclone Fengal begins landfall; Chennai airport halts ops till 4 am Sunday

Cyclonic storm Fengal has commenced making landfall close to Puducherry and it may approximately take four hours for it to cross the coast completely, an India Meteorological Department official said on Saturday.

Citing data and observations, IMD-Regional Meteorological Centre, Additional Director General, S Balachandran told PTI that the process of the cyclone's landfall commenced at about 5.30 pm on November 30.

On the area of landfall, he said it was close to “Puducherry area” and that it may take approximately 4 hours for the completion of the landfall process and added that more related information would be made available later.

Hospitals and houses were inundated in Chennai on Saturday following Cyclone Fengal-induced heavy downpour, as civic authorities said clearing works were being carried out on a “war-footing”.

A migrant worker who tried to withdraw cash from an ATM was reportedly electrocuted amid severe waterlogging.

Barricades and umbrellas were swept away by gusty winds and road users scurried for cover as it poured steadily, with cyclone Fengal inching closer to the shoreline.

Curiously, a lot of people, especially young men and women, frolicked at beaches, and strangely, visitors could be spotted at the Mahabalipuram world heritage site too, despite the government warning people against going near beaches, in view of the high tides. Wind speed was pretty high in coastline areas such as Marakkanam in Villupuram district.

Rainwater entered the premises of two state-run hospitals at Chromepet, a general hospital and a facility for thoracic medicine, both of which are located side by side and frequented by people.

Water was close to ankle deep even inside the hospital, leaving health care seekers and doctors in a tight spot. Police and local authorities placed sandbags at entry points and said all steps were being taken to address the issue.

Barricades could be seen strewn around at several roads, including Anna Salai, and a traffic light was uprooted at Sriperumbudur.

Several residential neighbourhoods were heavily inundated. These included parts of Korattur, Velachery-Madipakkam and Kodungaiyur. Rain water entered houses in suburban localities, such as the Hasthinapuram-Tirumalai Nagar, and residents had to place even refrigerators and washing machines on cots to prevent them from getting damaged.

Public transportation services were hit and people used flyovers and spaces beneath them as parking lots to avoid a repeat of what was endured during the 2015 floods. In view of the rains and copious inflows, reservoirs such as Chembarambakkam looked like an ocean.

Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) authorities said 22,000 personnel, including engineers, officials and sanitary workers, were on the job and a total of 1,686 motor pumps of various capacities including 25-hp and 100-hp were in use.

As many as 484 tractor-mounted heavy-duty pumps and 137 pumps of 100-hp capacity have been deployed. The GCC said work was on in a 'war-footing' to clear waterlogging in 134 spots and out of the 9 trees that fell, 5 have been cleared.

The IMD has issued a Level 7 ‘Danger’ warning for Chennai, indicating Cyclone Fengal’s potential to directly impact the area with significant consequences.

Cyclone Fengal, with sustained winds of 95 km/h, is moving north-northwest and is expected to make landfall between Karaikal and Mahabalipuram.

Signal 7 states that the cyclone is expected to cross over or near the port. Signals 5, 6 and 7 indicate danger to the port.