The IMD predicted moderate to heavy rainfall across Tamil Nadu and Puducherry until October 26. Photo: PTI
Tamil Nadu rains: Flooding hits southern districts, reservoir levels rise
Heavy northeast monsoon rains cause flooding in Tamil Nadu, disrupt transport and damage crops as reservoir levels rise. IMD forecasts more rain until October 26
Chennai, Oct 22 (PTI) Several parts of Tamil Nadu continued to receive rain owing to the active northeast monsoon, triggering a surge of water at the falls in the district besides sharply increasing water levels in the reservoirs across the state.
Heavy overnight rain caused inundation in parts of Chennai and many southern districts, with Sankarankoil reeling under significant waterlogging due to intense downpour.
Persistent heavy rainfall in Kanyakumari district affected the Kollamcode municipal area. Floodwaters entered many homes in areas leaving residents struggling to leave their properties. Vehicles and essential household goods have been submerged or damaged by the water.
Civic officials are currently working to clear the inundated water from houses and are also simultaneously checking the local drainage systems to clear blockages that may be exacerbating the flooding, an official said on Thursday.
Following heavy and incessant rainfall activity accompanied by thunder and lightning last night, the Kanyakumari district administration has declared a holiday for schools in the district today. Tirunelveli and Tenkasi districts have already announced a rain holiday.
Maximum temperatures range from 29 degrees Celsius to 32 degrees Celsius, and minimum temperatures hover around 24 degrees Celsius to 26 degrees Celsius.
The IMD has warned of light to moderate rain with thunderstorm and lightning likely at isolated places over Krishnagiri, Dharmapuri, Erode, Namakkal, Coimbatore, Dindigul, Virudhunagar, Tenkasi, Thoothukudi, Perambalur, Tiruchirappalli, Thiruvarur, Cuddalore, and Thanjavur districts.
Roads in several areas, including Avadi, T Nagar, Velachery, and Old Washermenpet in Chennai, got heavily riddled with potholes and muddy depressions, and infrastructure work was stalled on account of the heavy rain. This has forced the suspension of MTC bus routes in parts like Secretariat Colony.
In Madurai, heavy rain has completely submerged over 140 acres of freshly planted paddy fields in villages and farmers have reported that the lack of desilted irrigation canals is causing the standing crops to rot, leading to calls for state crop compensation.
In some Cauvery delta districts, farmers noted the initial spells were still sporadic and inadequate to fully sustain the samba paddy crop.
As the northeast monsoon intensified, inflows to primary drinking water sources and irrigation dams are seeing a significant rise.
The combined storage of Chennai's core reservoirs - six primary reservoirs supplying drinking water to Chennai (including Red Hills, Chembarambakkam, and Cholavaram) has risen rapidly to 37 per cent capacity following the initial heavy spells.
The water level in the Vaigai dam has risen steadily to 44.88 feet (up from 43 feet last week) due to robust inflows, while the storage in Mullaperiyar dam reached 116.90 feet, in Papanasam dam, the level climbed to 48 feet over the past week and Perunchani dam saw the storage increase to 44.35 feet.
The IMD predicted moderate to heavy rainfall across Tamil Nadu and Puducherry until October 26.
Speaking on the current weather status, an official said the low-pressure area remained active over the southwest Bay of Bengal and adjoining Tamil Nadu coast since October 21 evening. It is very likely to move west-northwestwards and under its influence a low-pressure area is likely to form over Southeast and adjoining East central Bay of Bengal around October 23. Then it is likely to move northwestwards and intensify further.
Meteorologists are also tracking a secondary upper-air cyclonic circulation over the North Andaman Sea. This separate system is forecast to move west-northwestward and likely consolidate into a second low-pressure area over the southeast Bay of Bengal around Friday.
Heavy to very heavy rainfall is expected over the next 24 hours in districts including Tuticorin, Tirunelveli, Kanyakumari, Tenkasi, Virudhunagar, Ramanathapuram, Theni, Dindigul, Madurai, Coimbatore, Nilgiris, Sivaganga, Pudukkottai, Thanjavur, Tiruvarur, Nagapattinam, and Mayiladuthurai.
Heavy rain is anticipated in Tiruvallur, Villuppuram, Tiruchirappalli, Erode, Ariyalur, Perambalur, Cuddalore, Namakkal, Tiruppur, and Karur. General moderate rainfall is expected over the next two days in Chennai and its neighbourhood, with potential for heavy downpour on October 24 and 25. PTI