Trees uprooted, roads flooded in just one hour rain at Kanchi
After reeling under scorching heat in the recent days, residents of neighbouring Kancheepuram district rejoiced after receiving an unexpected spell of rain of rain.
By : migrator
Update: 2019-04-22 20:31 GMT
Chennai
Though it lasted only for a brief while, the showers and accompanying wind were strong enough to lead to waterlogging and uprooting of trees in some areas in Kancheepuram.
The rains began at Kancheepuram at around 1 pm, and continued for about an hour at most parts of the district. With the summer setting in early this year, the rain in the middle of the dry spell prompted many residents to make the most of it by coming out of their houses to get themselves drenched.
Sevilimedu, Old Kancheepuram, Rangasamypuram and the surrounding areas received most showers during the spell, said local residents.
“The sudden change in climate was really good. It feels very nice; we hope it would continue for the next couple of days,” said Murugan, a vendor from Kancheepuram. “Lakes should be cleaned soon so that the water from such rains is not be wasted. The Rangasamypuram lake is in a bad shape, and needs to be repaired at the earliest,” he added.
Meanwhile, the strong winds that accompanied the rains resulted in uprooting of trees in some areas, leading to traffic disruption. The situation was brought back to normal and traffic resumed after police personnel and staff from local body cleared the trees.
The sudden spell of rain also led to disruption in power supply. After roads were clogged with water, power supply was disconnected until 8 pm.
Farmers hope for more showers
Farmers in Tiruvallur received a much needed relief after sudden showers lashed the district on Monday afternoon. After remaining cloudy in the morning, it began raining in the afternoon. But unlike Kancheepuram, there were no instances of waterlogging, as the showers were barely enough to moisten the dry land.
There were also thunder and lightning at several places, though no damages have been reported so far. “While this is not sufficient for us to do agriculture, such rains in summer will certainly help grow crops that require very little water, besides bringing down the heat,” said the farmers.
However, they expressed concern that most of the rainwater was wasted due to the lack of effective mechanisms to store it. “If the district administration comes up with measures to store rainwater, it will be of great help for us,” said Kumarasamy, a floriculturist.
Although Tiruvallur is known as the ‘land of lakes’, most water bodies here have completely dried up, as last monsoon failed and also due to the prolonged dry spell. Eager to revive agriculture, the farmers here hope for more rains this summer.
City likely to get light rain
The sporadic rainfall that parts of Tamil Nadu have been receiving has reduced on Monday, even as the city remained cloudy and some areas recorded short spells of shower. According to the weathermen at the Regional Meteorological Department, Chennai, Theni, Dindigul, Tirunelveli, Cuddalore and Kanniyakumari districts are expected to receive light to moderate amount of rainfall till April 25. Among the districts, Kanniyakumari and The Nilgiris recorded 2 cm and 1 cm rain respectively, while Coimbatore and Salem also received light showers. Thunderstorm with gusty winds and lightning is likely to occur at isolated places over Tamil Nadu in next 48 hours. The sky is likely to be partly cloudy during the day, with maximum and minimum temperatures to be around 36 degree Celsius and 29 degree Celsius. Mercury took a slight dip in the city, with Nungambakkam recording a maximum and minimum of 35 degree Celsius and 29.3 degree Celsius respectively. At Meenambakkam, it was 36.1 degree Celsius and 28.1 degree Celsius respectively. According to weather blogger Pradeep John, Chennai is likely to receive light rainfall from the first week of May.
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