Chennai’s Nungambakkam received the highest amount of rainfall in 30 years on the evening of Monday, October 31. As the northeast monsoon began in Chennai, several areas saw heavy rainfall and inundation. On November 1, the Nungambakkam area received 8 cm of rainfall, which is the highest amount of rainfall in 30 years, and third highest amount in 72 years. On November 1, 1964, Nungambakkam received 11 cm of rain, while the number was 13 cm in 1990, according to Dr S Balakrishnan, head of the Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) in Chennai.
Chennai district received 20 cm of rain between October 1 and November 1 this year, he said. Usually, Chennai sees 28 cm of rain during this time, however, this year saw lower-than-normal numbers during this period. "If we calculate from October 1 to October 31, Chennai usually receives 27 cm of rainfall. But this year only 14 cm was received, which is 48% lower than usual. We received nearly 18% rain between October 31 to November 1,” Dr Balakrishnan said.
In light of the rains, a holiday was declared for all schools in Chennai and its surrounding districts — Tiruvallur, Kancheepuram and Chengalpattu — on Tuesday. According to Dr S Balakrishnan, Chennai will likely receive heavy to very heavy rain in the next 24 hours, and moderate rain will likely follow for another 24 hours.
With the onset of northeast monsoon rains, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has placed motor pumps in several parts of the city to pump water out of the residential areas in case of waterlogging. A control room has also been set up to mitigate challenges regarding flooding, the GCC said. Chennai residents have been asked to reach out to GCC officials through the helpline number 1913 to complain about flood-related issues.