Chennai: Even as Chennai heaved a sigh of relief at cyclone Nivar sparring the metro, the hurricane which made landfall at Marakkanam, 120 km from here on the east coast late last night, battered Tamil Nadu's Cuddalore district and Puducherry, leaving a trail of destruction. In rain-related incidents, three people have died and three others injured, officials said.
Cuddalore, which was ravaged in the previous cyclone Vardha and Nilam, bore the brunt this time as well along with Puducherry. Standing crops in thousands of acres were either destroyed or submerged underwater. Electric poles and trees were uprooted bringing normal life to a grinding halt in the coastal district. Puducherry had withdrawn the clampdown under Section 144 and restoration works and clearing of waterlogging as well as tree trunks on the roads and streets were in full swing with Chief Minister V Narayanasamy inspecting them in the morning.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami visited Cuddalore district in the afternoon to personally assess the havoc caused by the cyclonic storm. The government has begun assessing the damages caused by the cyclone. “In view of the cyclone, 2.27 lakh people have been accommodated in 3085 relief camps.
As for as damages are concerned, 101 houses were damaged and 26 cattle heads have perished. The process of assessing and accounting the damage has started and the government will announce the compensation package soon,” Revenue Minister R B Udayakumar, told the media adding that relief and restoration works were being carried out on a war footing.
