Cyclone Fengal aftermath: Red, orange alerts TN districts including Chennai

CHENNAI: As Cyclone Fengal finally reached the coast and began making its landfall near Puducherry on Saturday night, the interior districts in its path are likely to receive extremely heavy rainfall for the next three days, said the weather department, which has issued red and orange alerts to several districts, including Chennai and its neighbourhood.

According to the latest update before going to print, a red alert implying extremely heavy rainfall (more than 204.4 mm rainfall in 24 hours) was issued for Villupuram, Kallakurichi, and Cuddalore districts.

Also Read: LIVE: Cyclone Fengal begins landfall, windspeed at 70-90 km/hr

Orange alert has been issued for Chennai, Tiruvallur, Kancheepuram, Chengalpattu, Ranipet, Tiruvannamalai, Dharmapuri, Salem, Ariyalur, Perambalur, Thanjavur, Tiruvarur, Nagapattinam, and Mayiladuthurai are likely to receive very heavy rainfall (115.6 mm – 204.4 mm), said weather department officials.

These apart, Vellore, Tirupattur, Krishnagiri, Erode, Nilgiris, Namakkal, Tiruchy, and Pudukkottai districts are likely to receive heavy rainfall in the next 24 hours. The Regional Meteorological Centre, Chennai, has also predicted heavy to very heavy rainfall in the Nilgiris, Coimbatore, Tirupur, Dindigul, Erode, Salem, Namakkal, Karur, Theni, and Madurai districts on December 2 and 3.

Also Read: Cyclone Fengal: Flights grounded, passengers stranded as Airport authorities shut runway

Besides rainfall, the weathermen have also issued warning stating that Chennai, Tiruvallur, Chengalpattu, Kancheepuram, Villupuram, Cuddalore, Thanjavur, Tiruvarur, Nagapattinam are likely to experience strong winds with speed reaching 50 kmph to 60 kmph gusting to 70 kmph on Sunday.

Earlier in the day, the cyclonic storm maintained its whimsical nature, confounding weather department officials and enthusiasts about its possible landfall and course that it would take. For a brief while, some even believed that the cyclone may not reach the coast before early morning on Sunday.

Also Read: Cyclone Fengal: Flights grounded, passengers stranded as Airport authorities shut runway

However, the outer spiral bands of the storm reached the coasts between Mahabalipuram and Karaikal, with a windspeed of 70-80 km per hour, gusting to 90 km per hour. Judging from the pace at which it was moving, the weather officials said it would take about three to four hours for it to cross the coast.

By the time it reached the shores, the heavy rainfall that battered the city in the morning had subsided and the city was slowly limping back to normalcy within a few hours. According to the data from RMC, the highest amount of rainfall within the city limits was in Nungambakkam (114 mm), followed by Meenambakkam (104 cm). It was slightly lower in Puducherry (95 cm).

Other districts received substantially lesser rainfall, which, however, could change in the next few hours.