Chennai sees heavy rain, red alert in city's Manali area after cloudburst | IMD update

Severe downpour occurred between 10:00 pm and midnight on Saturday night in Chennai.

Updated on: Aug 31, 2025, 13:35:57 IST

By HT News Desk

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An intense spell of rain struck Chennai late on Saturday, while a cloudburst was reported over the city's Manali area and its surrounding neighbourhoods, IMD's latest weather update said.

A red alert has been issued in Chennai's Manali town and Wimco Nagar area. (Representational Image / PTI)

According to rainfall data recorded up to 8:30 a.m. on August 31, a particularly severe downpour occurred in Chennai between 10:00 p.m. and midnight on Saturday night.

The highest rainfall was recorded in Zone 2, Manali (Division 19), with 27 cm, followed by New Manali Town with 26 cm, and Wimco Nagar in Zone 1 with 23 cm, as per IMD.

Mumbai, Pune, Raigad and more on orange alert for rain | IMD weather forecast

A red alert has been issued in Chennai's Manali town and Wimco Nagar area.

"Three extremely heavy, 8 very heavy and 28 heavy rainfall events were recorded during the 24-hour ending 8.30 am of August 31, with Manali, New Manali Town and Wimco Nagar recording extremely heavy rainfall of 27 cm, 26 cm and 23 cm, respectively," a bulletin issued by the department said.

Clouburst over Chennai's Manali area

A cloudburst was reported over Chennai's Manali area late on Saturday. Officials confirmed that six separate rain spells crossed the 10 cm/hour mark over the area, meeting the criteria for a cloudburst as defined by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) and the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).

Also Read | Red alert for Ghaziabad, Noida on orange as rain brings chill to Delhi-NCR in August

From 10:00 pm to 11:00 pm, Manali (Division 19) had already recorded 106.2 mm, confirming that the Manali area and its surrounding neighbourhoods experienced a cloudburst.

Flights diverted due to heavy rainfall

Some flights scheduled to arrive at the Chennai airport were diverted to Bengaluru, according to airport authorities.

Also Read | Weather Bee: North India saw twice the rain of their wettest normal last week

According to the airport sources, flights from Bengaluru, Delhi, France and Mangaluru scheduled to arrive Chennai were diverted to Bengaluru due to heavy rainfall in the wee hours of Sunday.

However, after the weather was clear in Chennai, the passengers were flown back to the city from Bengaluru by different flights, airport authorities said.

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