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Record rain batters Chennai, more predicted for four districts in Tamil Nadu
Chief minister M K Stalin said he will remind the Union government to upgrade weather forecasting systems.
Chennai: Except for essential services, schools, colleges and government offices were closed on Friday in four Tamil Nadu districts--Chennai, Chengalpattu, Thirvallur and Kancheepuram -- due to the sudden and intense rains from December 30 afternoon onwards.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Friday said that intense convective clouds were present over 26 out of the 38 districts in Tamil Nadu including Chennai, Kancheepuram, Chenglpattu, Thiruvallur, Cuddalore, Salem and Madurai, which have the potential to cause moderate to heavy rainfall.
On December 31, one of the weather stations in Chennai had recorded 24 cm of rainfall since Thursday, which is likely the highest single-day rainfall received this year in the city.
Chief minister M K Stalin, noting that these sudden intense rains were unpredicted, said that he will remind the Union government to upgrade weather forecasting systems. IMD had repeatedly got the forecast wrong during the north-east monsoon season.
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The deputy director of the regional meteorological centre (RMC), V Puviarsan, told a press conference in Chennai that they had predicted these intense rains only from December 31 but certain factors changed and led to rains lashing the city a day ahead. “There was a variation in the location of the upper air trough when we analysed,” said Puviarasan.
This north-east monsoon which is between October to December has brought record-breaking rainfall for Chennai and Tamil Nadu. In November, the highest rainfall of 31 cm was observed in Nagapattinam district. Tamil Nadu recorded 423 mm rainfall against the normal value of 179 mm, which is 137% above normal, according to the IMD. Chennai had received the highest monthly average district rainfall of 935 mm.
In December, the highest rainfall of 24 cm was observed at DGP Office (Chennai district) between December 30 and December 31. For the month of December, this is the highest rainfall recorded within 24-hours after 11cm was recorded on December 13, 2016. The all-time record for December in Chennai, according to IMD’s data, is 29 cm recorded on December 2, 2015. While incessant rains in November battered Chennai and a few other districts, December has been a relief from rains. So in December Tamil Nadu registered a deficit of 34% rainfall as it recorded 60 mm rainfall against the normal value of 92 mm.
Though the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) used heavy duty motor pumps overnight to drain our water from arterial roads and subways, interior localities still experienced water stagnation. Two subways remained closed in Chennai while at least nine main roads have water logging. IMD had put Chennai and the three adjoining districts on red alert on Thursday night which it brought down to yellow on Friday as rains reduced. The intense rains on Thursday in a short span of time led to severe flooding. Three people died of electrocution in Chennai on Thursday and stunned the city as it rapidly flooded the streets and commuters were stuck for hours together on arterial roads. Due to the water-logging and choco-block, several commutters turned to metro rail services and with rainfall continuing Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) extended its services by an hour from 11:00 pm to 12:00 am.
Stalin blamed the previous AIADMK regime which governed the state from 2011 up to April this year for the perennial rain-related issues. “We are confident that we will solve this issue before the next rainy season,” Stalin told reporters after he inspected flood-affected areas in Chennai. The AIADMK shot back in a statement. “What did this government achieve all these months that the city is floating in just a day,” questioned Edappadi Palaniswami and O Panneerselvam in a joint statement.
The IMD forecast for rains to continue in parts of Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal for the next two days.
