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Two dead as overnight heavy rain inundates parts of Chennai
Parts of the city such as General Patterns Road, Ashok Nagar, KK Nagar Tondiarpet were also inundated.
Two deaths were reported from across the state on Tuesday even as Chennai recorded 8cm of rainfall within 24 hours from October 31— the highest downpour in past 30 years, according to the officials familiar with the matter.
As the incessant rains battered the city and several parts were waterlogged, the tall claims of the authorities were exposed and the ground reality of how Chennai braced the first active spell of this year’s north east monsoon came to the fore. Even though some neighbourhoods coped better owing to the newly constructed drains and desilting of water bodies, it was the same old story of inundation in many other localities.
As of 5.30 pm on Tuesday, Chennai received an average of 5cm rainfall while other parts of Tamil Nadu also received moderate rainfall, according to the Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) Chennai. However, due to the intense rain which started from Monday overnight, Chennai recorded 8cm of rainfall within 24 hours from October 31, the RMC stated.
At least two people died in two separate rain-related incidents on Tuesday. A 47-year-old woman died on the spot after a portion of a wall of her old house’s balcony collapsed on her. In another incident, a 52-year-old auto driver died due to electrocution, according to reports. At least 17 trees have fallen in the city, said officials familiar with the matter, adding that two subways were closed due to waterlogging. Meanwhile, the and Chennai police said that traffic was diverted only on three arterial roads.
Parts of the city such as General Patterns Road, Ashok Nagar, KK Nagar Tondiarpet were also inundated.
“We have been arguing with the corporation staff to connect the stormwater drains in our street... they came (here) in May but no work has been done so far...now, we have ankle deep water inside our houses,” said Royapettah resident R Srikanth.
In another development, however, a few relieved residents from Velachery and Mogappair areas took to social media platforms to share photos of their streets comparing how it was inundated during the previous years and how water was receding this year due to the recent drain network.
“The situation is not bad but continuous rain may cause problems,” said V S Jayaraman, a resident of T Nagar whose locality perennially floods during monsoon.
The Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) prioritised places such as T Nagar in their flood preparation work. They had started the work to construct the stormwater drains for 157 km in May which was ongoing until the monsoon set in on October 29. The civic body spent ₹710 crore for the project which they say has been completed.
New drains were constructed and in places with existing drains their capacity was increased. “As a result, the areas where rainwater used to stagnate for 5 to 10 days, including the Seethammal Colony, G N Chetty Road, Bazullah road, these places have not stagnated despite the current heavy rainfall,” minister for municipal administration K N Nehru told reporters.
“Last year, water was stagnant in 700 places and motor pumps (to drain out the water) were used in 1,200 places. This year water is stagnant only in 40 places and pumps are being used there,” Nehru said.
Meanwhile, chief minister M K Stalin instructed the officials to evacuate people from low lying areas, read a statement from the chief minister’s office after he held a review meeting on monsoon preparedness on Tuesday. The chief minister also held a video conference with collectors of 21 districts, senior officials, minister and Chennai mayor R Priya to get an update on the situation.
“Those from low lying areas should be moved to government relief centres with basic amenities and priority should be given to senior citizens, people with disabilities, pregnant women and children,” Stalin had directed them.
