Chennai: Heavy rains battered Tamil Nadu and Puducherry in the last 24 hours as Cyclonic Storm Fengal, after making landfall near Puducherry on Saturday night, remained stationary near the union territory.
The Regional Meteorological Centre in Chennai on Sunday morning said that the cyclone will gradually weaken into a deep depression in six hours.
"CS Fengal lay over the same region 30km North of Cuddalore and 40km East of Villupuram. It will slowly move westwards and gradually weaken into a Deep depression during 6 hours," RMC Chennai said in a post on X at 9:29 am.
CS Fengal lay over the same region 30km North of Cuddalore and 40km East of Villupuram. It will slowly move westwards and gradually weaken into a Deep depression during 6 hours
— Tamilnadu Weather-IMD (@ChennaiRmc) December 1, 2024
Record Rains
Under the impact of the cyclone, Mailam in Tamil Nadu's Villupuram district recorded the highest 50 cm rainfall from 8.30 am November 30 to 5.30 am December 1. Puducherry recorded 46 cm of rainfall during the time, the highest received by UT within 24 hours, as previously 21 cm rainfall was recorded on on October 31, 2004.
The Cyclone made landfall near Puducherry around 5.30 pm on Saturday and completed the process "between 10.30 pm and 11.30 pm", RMC Additional Director General, S Balachandran, said in an update at 7.30 am on Sunday.
Chennai airport resumes ops
Operations at the Chennai airport, which had been suspended on Sunday, resumed past midnight but many flights suffered cancellations and delays. As many as 24 domestic services were cancelled and 26 international flights, both arriving and departing were delayed, officials said.
The first flight after the runway reopening was Kuwait Airways KU0343 which landed at 4:08 am today, followed by KU0344, departing at 5.18 am.
"Chennai Airport has resumed operations from 0100 hrs on 1st December 2024. We advise passengers to check with their respective airlines for flight updates," the Airport authorities said on their official X handle.
Chennai Airport springs back to normal operations in record time after the impact of #CycloneFengal, thanks to the relentless dedication of #AAI teams in #CNS, #ATM, #GFS, and #Engineering, who worked tirelessly to ensure passenger safety and operational readiness.
— Chennai (MAA) Airport (@aaichnairport) December 1, 2024
The first… pic.twitter.com/oe75C180aX
Fengal, initially a deep depression over the southwest Bay of Bengal, intensified into a cyclonic storm on Friday afternoon and then began moving north-westward.
The RMC had declared a red weather alert indicating isolated extremely heavy rainfall in seven coastal districts -- Chennai, Tiruvallur, Chengalpattu, Kancheepuram, Villupuram, Kallakurichi, Cuddalore districts and Puducherry -- on Saturday.
Holiday For Schools And Colleges In Chennai And 3 Other Districts
Schools and colleges in Chennai, Chengalpet, Tiruvallur, and Kancheepuram observed a holiday on Saturday given the rain and winds in the backdrop of the cyclonic storm.
The Tamil Nadu Government had also asked district administrations in Mayiladuthurai, Cuddalore, Villupuram, and Kallakurichi to take a call on closing educational institutes based on the local conditions.
The University of Madras’ Distance Education Institute postponed the undergraduate examination scheduled on Saturday. They will now be held on December 14.
Heavy Rains In These Areas
Isolated heavy to very heavy rain with extremely heavy rain lashed Chennai, Tiruvallur, Chengalpattu, Kancheepuram, Villupuram, Kallakurichi, Cuddalore districts and Puducherry.
Heavy to very heavy rain occurred at isolated places over Ranipet, Tiruvannamalai, Vellore, Perambalur, Ariyalur, Thanjavur, Tiruvarur, Mayiladuthurai, Nagapattinam districts and Karaikal area. Tirupattur, Krishnagiri, Dharmapuri, Salem, Namakkal, Tiruchirappalli, Pudukkottai and Karur districts also witnessed heavy rain at isolated places.
IT Companies Advised To Implement Work From Home
The Tamil Nadu government urged IT companies to ask their employees to work from home on Saturday considering the risk involved in travelling amid heavy rains and gusty winds, especially in the afternoon when the cyclonic storm will make landfall.
Public Transport Suspended On ECR, OMR
The government also suspended public transport on the East Coast Road (ECR) and Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR) from Saturday afternoon and asked commuters to plan their travel accordingly.
This step was to ensure the safety of the people as upon landfall, the storm had wind speeds from 60 to 90 kmph. The Tamil Nadu Disaster Management Authority urged people to stay indoors and avoid non-essential travel on Saturday.
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