In a stark reminder of the deadly floods of December 2015, rains lashed several parts of Tamil Nadu including Chennai for 48 hours, killing at least four across the state and forcing schools in the city to shut down on Wednesday.
The Chennai city administration announced on Wednesday morning that the schools will shut for one more day since the MET department has forecasted more rains for the city.
From Monday morning to Tuesday morning, Chennai received a rainfall of about 13.5 cm which, has increased the water levels at the four reservoirs near the city by 3%. The Chembarambakkam reservoir was recorded at 17.6cm water levels on Tuesday, reported The Times of India.
(Madipakkam in Chennai)
The New Indian Express reported that water had begun to enter houses in Krishna Nagar and Lakshmipuram at Mudichur in Chennai after two days of rain, which has started making people vacate the place and find another accommodation. Mudichur was one of the areas which was worst affected during the floods in 2015.
(TNPL colony in Kolathur)
A 60-year-old woman fell into waist deep water and died at Sandiappan Street off Konnur High Road on Tuesday morning. Santhamma, the deceased, was a tender coconuts seller and was returning from her son’s house when the mishap happened. The residents of Otteri saw her body floating in the water and informed the police about it.
In Cuddalore, as the rain continued to lash out in the district for the second day on Tuesday, three people lost their lives and about 60,000 hectares of land is under water, reported The New Indian Express.
(Athipattu Pudunagar in Chennai)
The three dead have been identified as Latha, (26), Rajeshwari, (35) and Ramasamy, (45). Latha, a resident of Pillalithotti village, died after a house collapsed and fell on her. She was on her way to fetch water when the incident happened. Rajeshwari, passed away after she accidentally touched a live electric wire while drying clothes on the terrace. Ramasamy from Kolathankurichi village died after he fell from a transformer while on duty. The district recorded a rainfall of 78.70mm.
According to reports, Nagapattinam district faced the highest rainfall on Saturday. The district had a rainfall of 4 cm on Monday, but the total rainfall in this season reached 14 cm by Tuesday. It had affected the samba crop in Mayiladutharai, Sirkazhi, Kizhvelur, Tharangambadi, Vedaranayam taluks and inundated the arable lands.
Despite the waterlogging in different areas in Chennai as well as parts of Tamil Nadu, Municipal Administration SP Velumani claimed on Tuesday that the state has made better arrangements to face floods than United States and United Kingdom. This came after DMK leader and opposition party leader MK Stalin complained of areas in Chennai facing waterlogging due to rains.