North-East monsoon: Tamil Nadu gears up for heavy downpour till Nov 4
The arrival of the north-east monsoon in south India was heralded by heavy rains and thunderstorms in Tamil Nadu, Rayalseema in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala. Two people died in rain related incidents in Chennai.
Metros like Chennai and Bengaluru have been experiencing a deluge leading to waterlogging in many areas and disrupting traffic. A 45-year-old, Shanthi, from Pulianthope in Chennai died on Tuesday (November 1) morning after a concrete slab collapsed on her and a 52-year-old auto driver, Devendhiran, got electrocuted to death near Vyasarpadi. Water entered houses in low-lying areas in some parts of north Chennai.
Chennai and its adjoining districts like Tiruvallur, Kancheepuram and Chengalpattu will continue to experience more heavy rainfall, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). The heavy rains, preceded by an orange alert issued by the IMD on Tuesday (November 1), in fact, prompted authorities to shut schools in these areas.
Also read: Wonder why Chennai suffers floods and drought? It’s the poor infrastructure, stupid
For the first time in three decades, Nungambakkam, a core city area, recorded 8 cm in a single day and suburban Red Hills 13 cm, followed by 12 cm in Perambur, also in the city.
This first spell of the north-east monsoon, which will last till November 4 in Chennai, will be characterised by moderate rainfall, lightning, and thunderstorms. Under the influence of the north-east monsoon for the rest of the week, Chennai’s maximum and minimum temperatures will be 31-32 °C and 25-26 °C, respectively. Meanwhile, a high alert was also issued in Vellore and Tirupathur on Tuesday.
According to the Regional Meteorological Centre, Chennai, the city and adjoining districts have witnessed widespread rainfall on Monday and Tuesday and are likely to be subjected to heavy to very heavy rainfall over the next two days. The core Chennai city region had already received 8.04cms of rainfall over the last 24 hours, as of 8.30 am on Tuesday, said the Met department.
And, this is said to be the third time in the last 72 years that the city has received such rainfall on November 1st.
Also read: Chennai receives highest rainfall in 30 years; schools shut
Predictably, due to the steady downpour the roads were waterlogged and inundated. Residents took to Twitter to complain.
Pathetic condition of Chennai just after single day rain. Searching for naysayers who kept ranting about Bengaluru rains few months back. #chennairains
— G Pradeep (@pradeep_gee) November 1, 2022
Bengaluru too affected by rains
In Bengaluru, the state government’s massive event to posthumously honour the late actor Puneeth Rajkumar with the Karnataka Ratna award was held amid the steady downpour at the Vidhana Soudha.
The large gathering at the event and the rain had caused traffic jams in Bengaluru’s Central Business District (CBD). The Met department has now forecast a generally cloudy sky with light to moderate rains for Bengaluru until November 5.
TN gears up for the heavy downpour
Tamil Nadu has swung into action to prepare for the heavy downpour. 15 teams of India’s National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been deployed and kept on standby to handle any emergency arising out the heavy rain brought by the north-east monsoon.
Of the teams, 13 are based at the NRDF Battalion Headquarters in Arakkonam, whereas a team each is based out of Chennai city and the mountainous Nilgiris district.
TN Chief Minister M K Stalin chaired a virtual meeting of top officials on monsoon preparedness and instructed officials to work in cohesion and directed them to take swift action on complaints.
According to media reports, the NDRF is liaising with the state Emergency Operational Control Room and the teams are ready with their equipment to go on the ground at any point. Meanwhile, the Greater Chennai Corporation has dispatched emergency response teams to deal with the flood threat. A team of more than 2,000 workers is inspecting electrical installations, including 2.3 lakh streetlights and 7,000 pillar boxes, to avoid death by electrocution.
The state department has also set control rooms in all 15 zones to be ready to tackle any problems as rainfall is expected for three days in Chennai.
Also, Chennai’s civic body has set up helplines, like 1913, for reporting civic issues. Chennai residents can also reach the flood control room at 044-25619206, 044-25619207, or 044-25619208