Chennai, Oct 18 The red alert issued for Chennai early on Sunday, based on a forecast that the city will receive extremely heavy rainfall, was downgraded to ‘yellow’.
The red alert means a forecast of extremely heavy rainfall above 20 cm, and the orange alert implies a forecast of very heavy rainfall above 11 cm. The yellow alert signals heavy rain of 6 cm to 11 cm.
The Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) in Chennai, in its bulletin released at 8 pm on Sunday, downgraded the rain alert issued to Chennai and neighbouring districts of Chengalpattu, Kancheepuram and Thiruvallur to ‘yellow’.
However, an orange alert still remains in Nilgiris, Coimbatore and Nilgiris districts, the weather department maintained.
RMC in its weather report further said rainfall occurred in most places over Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal regions over the last 24 hours.
The data further said that Parry’s Corner in Chennai received the highest rainfall of 36 cm in the 24 hours ending 8.30 am on Sunday, followed by Kathivakkam near here receiving 34 cm during the same period.
Meanwhile, accompanied by cabinet ministers and senior government officials, the Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay visited the Integrated Command and Control Centre in Chennai Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) to monitor rainfall statistics, the status of subways, canals, river mouths, and the swift redressal of public grievances.
Following the review, TN CM Vijay instructed all departments to maintain strict coordination and execute relief measures with utmost diligence in anticipation of further heavy rain warnings.
An official release from the GCC further added that despite severe weather conditions that dumped over 30 cm of rain in parts of the metropolis, proactive field operations, round-the-clock rescue efforts, and continued coordination ensured that major thoroughfares and subways were cleared of waterlogging with no casualties or major accidents reported.
Due to the exceptional intensity of the precipitation, water stagnation was reported in 35 locations across the city.
However, pre-positioned motor pumps ensured that accumulated rainwater was rapidly cleared from all affected spots.
Similarly, fallen trees reported across 22 locations were cleared immediately by corporation workers, restoring smooth vehicular movement and the city’s 22 subways were also cleared of rainwater swiftly, ensuring uninterrupted traffic flow.
The release further said that a total of 36 corporation boats and 97 fisheries department boats are kept ready for rescue operations in low-lying areas.
In addition, a total of 227 temporary relief shelters have been kept ready in low-lying areas, supported by 112 central kitchens stocked with necessary provisions.
Additionally, one team from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and four teams from the Tamil Nadu Disaster Response Force (TNDRF) were actively deployed on the ground to handle vulnerable pockets.
The release claimed that rainwater has now been completely cleared from all major bus routes and most streets, and pumping operations in a few remaining low-lying pockets are in their final stages and will wrap up shortly, leaving the overall situation entirely under control.
(PTI News)
