india

Chennai Rain: Orange alert issued by IMD for several districts in Tamil Nadu

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange alert for seven districts in Tamil Nadu, including Chennai, Vellore, and Ranipet. A yellow alert has also been issued for certain areas of the state on Thursday, October 17. According to the IMD's latest update, a depression over the Bay of Bengal is expected to cross the coasts of North Tamil Nadu and South Andhra Pradesh, near Chennai, during the early morning of October 17. In anticipation of this storm, isolated very heavy to extremely heavy rainfall is forecasted for parts of Tamil Nadu and South Andhra Pradesh, with very heavy rain also expected over Kerala and South Interior Karnataka today, October 16. The IMD stated that "heavy to very heavy rain with extremely heavy rain at one or two places is likely to occur over Tiruvallur, Kancheepuram, Chengalpattu, and Chennai districts." The heavy rainfall in Tamil Nadu is attributed to an upper air cyclonic circulation over the Bay of Bengal. Waterlogging has been reported in several areas, including Chennai, where visuals have shown people wading through knee-deep water as parts of the city are affected by flooding. Streets and roads are inundated with muddy water following the intense rainfall. Train, flight, and bus services have been disrupted: Bus services have been impacted across several regions. Additionally, Southern Railway has announced the cancellation of four express trains, including the Chennai Central-Mysuru Kaveri Express, due to waterlogging. Several domestic flights have also been cancelled due to insufficient passenger turnout.

first published: Oct 17, 2024 01:45 pm